Ciocalypta alba, Carvalho, Mariana De S., Carraro, João L., Lerner, Cléa & Hajdu, Eduardo, 2003

Carvalho, Mariana De S., Carraro, João L., Lerner, Cléa & Hajdu, Eduardo, 2003, First record of Ciocalypta (Demospongiae: Halichondrida) from Brazil, southwestern Atlantic, with the description of a new species, Zootaxa 302, pp. 1-8 : 2-6

Ciocalypta alba sp. nov. ( Figs. 1 , 2 ; Tab. I)

Holotype. MCNPOR 5056, Ilha de Coral, SC, 27º56.242'S – 48º32.679'W, 12 m depth, colls. C. Lerner & J.P. Cauduro Filho, 08.iii.2001.

Paratypes. MCNPOR 5060, Ilha de Coral, SC, 27º56.242'S – 48º32.679'W, 12 m depth, coll. C. Lerner & J.P. Cauduro Filho, 08.iii.2001; MNRJ 501, Saco das Anchovas, Ilhabela, São Sebastião, SP, 23º55.206'S – 45º17.936'W, 15­17m depth, coll. E. Hajdu, 22/ vi/1997; MNRJ 555, Ponta do Frade, Ilhabela, São Sebastião, SP, 23º54.972'S – 45º27.547'W, 24­25m depth, coll. M. LeBlanc, 18/vi/1997; MNRJ 779, 781, Ilha da Serraria, Ilhabela, SP, 23º48.758'S – 45º13.812'W, 20m depth, coll. E. Hajdu, 11/i/1996.

Comparative material. Ciocalypta penicillus — MNRJ 1171 (dredged off Roscoff, France, det. C. Lévi, iv.1992).

Diagnosis. Ciocalypta alba sp.nov. possesses neatly transparent fistules with small habit (up to 2cm), and a single category of oxeas.

Description. Specimens with firm consistency, hispid, with a basal mass with a variable number of slender conical fistules ranging from 0.4–2cm in height, and up to 5mm in thickness ( Fig. 2 a). The fistules are fused in a thin base ca. 1cm high which is covered by some milimetres of fine sediment. Colour of the fistules and the base is white­yelowish alive, and whitish in alcohol. The surface has a translucent appearance, through which the central spicular axis is clearly visible. Oscules and pores inconspicuous, even in situ.

Skeleton. Fistules, cavernous ( Fig. 2 b) — Ectosomal skeleton tangential to the surface, easily detachable, formed by oxeas. Axial choanosomal skeleton constituted by a dense, central, longitudinal spicule bundle. Extra­axial tracts ramifying from the centre towards the ectosome, where they form subectosomal brushes. Little or no spongin present.

Base, cavernous ( Fig. 2 c) — Dense, easily detachable ectosomal skeleton with spicules tangential to the surface. Choanosomal skeleton formed by criss­crossed oxeas basally; wherefrom bundles, mostly parallel, running towards the surface, originate. These bundles form brushes close to the surface.

Spicules ( Fig. 2 d; Table 1). Oxeas — straight (rarely) or slightly curved at centre (often): length 156­ 413 ­874 µm, width 2­ 10.2 ­20 µm.

Distribution and Ecology. Known from Ilha de Coral, Santa Catarina state, and Ilhabela, São Sebastião, São Paulo state. The specimens were collected at 12–25 m depth. The base is covered by sediment.

Etymology. The species is named after the colour white­yelowish alive of the fistules and the base, and the translucent appearance of the surface.

Remarks. We recognize five species of Ciocalypta from the Atlantic ocean, viz. C. gibbsi Wells, Wells & Gray, 1960 (North Carolina); C. penicillus Bowerbank, 1864 (originally NE and NW Atlantic, Caribbean, besides Mediterranean and several localities in the Indo­Pacific area); C. polymastia (Von Lendenfeld, 1888; Patagonia, besides E Australia and New Zealand); C. porrecta ( Topsent, 1928; Cabo Verde) and C. pseudoporrecta (Van Soest & Stentoft, 1988; Caribbean).

‘ Ciocalypta ’ hyaloderma Ridley & Dendy, 1886 (off the mouth of the Rio de la Plata, ca. 1080m depth) is considered misidentified if Erpenbeck & Van Soest´s (2002) revision of diagnostic criteria is followed. Ridley & Dendy´s (1887) sponge has two widely divergent branches, and a neatly reticulated, well developed and very wide meshed ectosomal skeleton. Ciocalypta , on the contrary, has conspicuous finger­shaped fistules, disposed side by side, and a "tangential reticulation of intercrossing bundles", much denser and more confused than in ‘C’. hyaloderma.

TABLE I: Comparative micrometric data for Ciocalypta alba sp.nov. Measures are given as smallest length – mean length – largest length/ smallest width – mean width – largest width, in micrometers. Oxeas, N = 100 for length measures and N = 20 for width measures per specimen.

Specimens Óxeas

MCNPOR 5056 Holotype 204­ 430.3 ­732/3­ 10.2 ­20

MCNPOR 5060 Paratype 190­ 480.6 ­874/2­ 9.1 ­19 ‘ Leucophloeus ’ styliferus Stephens, 1915 was to be transferred to Ciocalypta , as the former genus is considered a synonym of the latter by Erpenbeck & Van Soest (2002). This species, nevertheless, does not conform to the diagnosis of Ciocalypta , due to its absolute absence of fistules. We suggest the South African (SE Atlantic) species to be provisionally placed in Hymeniacidon , until a more comprehensive revision of other records of Leucophloeus is undertaken.

Ciocalypta gibbsi was transferred to Halichondria by Diaz et al. (1993), but its possession of styles next to oxeas originally reported by Wells et al. (1960), besides the fistular habit, suggests it is more appropriate to keep the species in Ciocalypta . This species differs from the new species described here by its apparently occasional possession of abundant styles and tendency for showing generally thinner megascleres (up to 12µm in Wells et al. 1960; up to 10µm in Diaz et al. 1993; up to 20µm in the new species). Additionally, both species appear visually different because of C. gibbsi ´s thicker, dull fistules, instead of the neatly transparent ones of the new species (similar to those of NE Atlantic C. pennicillus , cf. Weinberg 1994, p. 156, and Van Soest et al. 2000).

Ciocalypta penicillus is a species known for the variability of its spicular complement, where styles and oxeas are variably abundant, sometimes occurring alone (e.g. Topsent 1921). One striking difference between this and the new species is the consistently smaller habit of the fistules in the latter (up to 2cm), as opposed to fistules over 6, and up to 10cm high in C. penicillus (e.g. Bowerbank 1864; Wells et al. 1960; Weinberg 1994; Van Soest et al. 2000). Additionaly, C. penicillus possesses more cavernous fistules and thicker and conspicuous secondary tracts of megascleres (ca. 215 m; cf. ERPENBECK & VAN SOEST, 2002).

Ciocalypta polymastia (von Lendenfeld, 1888, sensu Cuartas 1992) has three categories of styles (130–180, 210–250 and 320–450µm long), which makes it only distantly related to the new species.

Ciocalypta porrecta differs from the new species by its possession of a dense, ectosomal, paratangential arrangement of spicule brushes supporting isolated tangential spicules, instead of the neat, tangential reticulation of spicule bundles in the new species. Topsent’s (1928) specimen differed further by its possession of slightly larger oxeas (up to 1000µm) and stout, dull fistules. The latter two characters were not observed in a Spanish specimen by Carballo (2001, as Coelocalypta ).

Ciocalypta pseudoporrecta differs from our new species due its possession of three categories of oxeas (260–480, 475–900, 100–1800µm long). Additionally, its shape is very distinct from that of the new species. Ciocalypta pseudoporrecta has a subspherical base from which a single, hard fistule arises

The new species is thus considered well distinguished from other Atlantic congeners, with the exception of C. penicillus from which it differs only marginally. Given the unlikelyness of conspecificity over such a large geographic distance, further supported from the realization that other species with alleged similar distributions, such as Chondrilla nucula Schmidt, 1862 ( DE LAUBENFELS, 1956; MURICY et al., 1991), Chondrosia reniformis Nardo, 1847 (SOLÉ­CAVA et al., 1981), and Cliona celata Grant, 1826 (MOTHES­DE­ MORAES, 1985; MURICY et al., 1991) are highly dubious identifications for the Western Atlantic (KLAUTAU et al., 1999; LAZOSKI et al., 2001), we feel confident in recognizing C. alba ´s status as a new species.

Hooper et al. (1997) revised the Indo­pacific records of Ciocalypta , listing ten valid species, two of which were described as new species. The present paper is a complementary review of the Atlantic fauna.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Location of São Paulo State (A) and Santa Catarina State (B), with the collecting localities indicated: a, Ponta do Frade, Ilhabela; b, Saco das Anchovas, Ilhabela; c, Ilha da Serraria, Ilhabela; d, Ilha de Coral, Florianópolis.

FIGURE 2. Ciocalypta sp. nov., (Holotype, MCNPOR 5056). a. Specimen fixed and preserved in alcohol (Scale bar = 1.5 cm); b. Fistule skeleton; c. Basal skeleton (Scale bar = 400 m). d. Oxeas (Scale bar = 200 m).