Mycale (Aegogropila) erythraeana ( Row, 1911 )

Van, Rob W. M., Aryasari, Ratih & De, Nicole J., 2021, Mycale species of the tropical Indo-West Pacific (Porifera, Demospongiae, Poecilosclerida), Zootaxa 4912 (1), pp. 1-212 : 28

Mycale (Aegogropila) erythraeana ( Row, 1911)

Esperella erythraeana Row, 1911: 340 , fig. 19.

Mycale erythraeana ; Burton 1926: 80 (no description).

Summary description (from Row 1911). Sponge consolidating a mass of bryozoans lying on a muddy bottom, size 6.5 x 5 x 2.5 cm. Color in alcohol dark grey-brown. Conisistency ‘lax’. Surface smooth with small oscules. The choanosomal skeleton is plumose, with thick spicule tracts (30 spicules in cross section) thinning out towards the surface, forming loose spicule brushes. The ectosomal skeleton has the spicule tracts intercrossing without orientation, thickness 4–5 spicules in cross section. Rosettes of anisochelae are 70 µm in diameter. Mycalostyles are 320–330 x 4 µm. Anisochelae in two size categories, 24–36 µm and 15 µm. Sigmas 50–70 µm (thickness 2 µm). Toxas strongly curved, averaging 90 µm in length. There are also dubious raphides or hair-like oxeas/styles.

Distribution. Khor Shinab, Red Sea; also Suez Canal.

Comments. This species reminds of Mycale (Aegogropila) furcata Calcinai et al., 2013 (cf. below), as this shares the ‘lax’ skeleton, two sizes of anisochelae in the same size range and long thin toxas. Differences are the bifurcate sigmas (we believe this is a minor difference as this occurs in a low frequency in other species as well), and the smaller mycalostyles. Similarly, Mycale (Carmia) suezza ( Row, 1911) appears close, differing primarily in lacking the aegogropila-type ectosomal skeleton (see below). Mycale (Aegogropila) mannarensis Thomas, 1968 (see below) is also close but differs in being black and lacking proper toxas, in stead having bundled long raphides.