Haliclona (Halichoclona)

Rützler, Klaus, Piantoni, Carla, Van, Rob W. M. & Díaz, Cristina, 2014, Diversity of sponges (Porifera) from cryptic habitats on the Belize barrier reef near Carrie Bow Cay, Zootaxa 3805 (1), pp. 1-129 : 80-81

Haliclona (Halichoclona) sp.

Material. USNM 1229103, Curlew Bank forereef cave, 20 m; C. Piantoni and M. Parrish col. 23 Aug 2012.

External morphology. Cushion-shaped specimen, covering about 8 cm 2 area, 15 mm thick. Smooth surface except for about 10 rounded depressions of 2–4 mm in diameter; on closer look they turned out to be pore sieves. Firm consistency but fragile, yellowish white color in life, white in alcohol.

Skeleton structure. In the ectosome there is a subisotropic spicule reticulum except for the pore-sieve areas which are surrounded and crossed by meshes of multispicular tracts. The choanosme is also supported by a subisotropic reticulation of spicules, alternating with a few multispicular strands.

Spicules. Oxeas, most of them curved, in two size categories. Oxeas I: 150–180 x 4–9 (171 x 8) Μm; oxeas II: 90–130 x 2–7 (109 x 5) Μm.

Ecology. Found in a cave on the forereef, 20 m.

Distribution. Only known from Belize.

Comments. The skeleton structure is that of a Haliclona , subgenus Halichoclona , but no described species is similar to our specimen. The yellow color, pore sieves, and two size classes of oxeas are the most distinctive characteristics of our specimen. We decided not to name a new species until at least one other specimen has been found that can confirm our diagnosis.