Haliclona Grant, 1836

Jackson, Celia P. J., De, Wallie H., Weerdt & Webber, Mona K., 2006, Haliclona (Reniera) portroyalensis n. sp., a new chalinid sponge (Porifera, Demospongiae, Haplosclerida) from the southeast coast of Jamaica, Zootaxa 1319, pp. 59-68 : 61-62

Genus Haliclona Grant, 1836

Diagnosis (partly after De Weerdt 2002). Sponge is cushion­shaped, frequently with oscular mounds or chimneys, branching, tube­shaped or repent ramose, rarely thinly encrusting. Colour purple, violet, pink, brown, yellowish, green, blue, black, sometimes white, orange or red. Consistency varying from soft, fragile, to firm, elastic, brittle or corky. Ectosomal skeleton, if present, a more or less regular, tangential, uni­ or paucispicular reticulation of spicules forming three­ to six­sided meshes. Choanosomal skeleton an uni­ or paucispicular isotropic reticulation without clearly distinguishable primary or secondary lines, or sub­ to anisotropic with vaguely to more clearly distinguishable primary and secondary lines. Spongin usually present, confined to the nodes of the spicules or more abundant, sometimes forming the dominant part of the skeleton. Megascleres smooth diactines, oxeas or strongyles, of moderate length (80–250 µm) and thickness (5–10 µm), rarely larger (300–400 x 10–15 µm). Microscleres, if present, sigmas, toxas, raphides or microxeas.

Remarks. For synonymy and discussion of the genus Haliclona see De Weerdt (2002)