Clathria (Clathria) gomezae van Soest, 2017

Ugalde, Diana, Fernandez, Julio C. C., Gómez, Patricia, Lôbo-Hajdu, Gisele & Simões, Nuno, 2021, An update on the diversity of marine sponges in the southern Gulf of Mexico coral reefs, Zootaxa 5031 (1), pp. 1-112 : 48-49

Clathria (Clathria) gomezae van Soest, 2017

Tables 6, 7; Figs. 42A–G , 45I

Synonymy and references: Clathria (Microciona) echinata: Gómez (2014: 66 , in part); Clathria (Clathria) gomezae van Soest (2017: 146) .

Type locality. Guyana .

Material examined. CNPGG-2299, Cayo Arcas reef (20.49856°N, 92.20481°W), 17 m depth, coll. Oscar Bocardo, 13 September 2017 ; CNPGG-2231, Cayo Arcas reef (20.19566°N, 91.95997°W), 10.2 m depth, coll. Diana Ugalde, 24 August 2018 .

Distribution. Mexico ( Gómez 2014 as C (C.) echinata ; current records), Guyana ( van Soest 2017).

Remarks. Up to now, C. (C.) gomezae has been reported only in the Guyana shelf ( van Soest 2017), and in the SGoM ( Gómez 2014, as C. (C.) echinata ). Clathria (C.) gomezae is characterized by a massive body shape, with an upright outgrowth, grossly punctate, reddish color when alive. The spiculation consists of principal and auxiliary styles, cleistochelae, isochelae, and normal toxas. C. (C.) echinata ( Alcolado 1984) can be confused with C. (C.) gomezae because of the similarities between the spiculation, but C. (C.) echinata differs for its encrusting or sub-spherical shape, the presence of oxeote toxa in great size, and above all the spicule dimensions. Van Soest (2017) suggested a new study to determine if the variation of the species belongs to a polymorphic species and to include Clathria (Microciona) trairae Santos & Pinheiro, 2014 , which also differs in only minor details with C. (M.) echinata .

Subgenus Clathria (Thalysias) Duchassaing & Michelotti, 1864

Figures

FIGURE 42. Clathria (Clathria) gomezae van Soest, 2017 (CNPGG-2231), skeleton and spicules: A. transversal section of the skeleton; B. detail of the ectosomal and choanosomal regions; C. choanosomal principal styles; D. ectosomal auxiliary subtylostyles, white arrows pointing to palmate isochelae and a black arrow pointing to large and small categories of cleistochelae; E. ectosomal auxiliary subtylostyles, white arrow pointing to a large cleistochelae (large category of size) and black arrow pointing to a small cleistochelae (small category of size); F. palmate isochelae (white arrow pointing to two of it) and large and small categories of cleistochela. G. toxa. Scale bars. A = 500 µm; B = 150 µm; C = 100 µm; D = 50 µm; E–F = 25 µm; G = 200 µm.

FIGURE 45. In situ photographs of species analyzed in the present study: A. Neopetrosia proxima Duchassaing & Michelotti, 1864 (CNPGG-2264); B. Neopetrosia proxima Duchassaing & Michelotti, 1864 (CNPGG-2376); C. Neopetrosia subtriangularis (Duchassaing, 1850) (CNPGG-2435); D. Petrosia (Petrosia) weinbergi van Soest, 1980 (CNPGG-2434). E. Xestospongia muta (Schmidt, 1870) (CNPGG-2230); F. Siphonodictyon xamaycaense Pulitzer-Finali, 1986 (CNPGG-2441), arrows pointing to fistules; G. Siphonodictyon xamaycaense Pulitzer-Finali, 1986 (CNPGG-2432); H. Clathria (Clathria) foliacea Topsent, 1889 (CNPGG-2172), its stem is covered by algae; I. Clathria (Clathria) gomezae van Soest, 2017 (CNPGG-2231); J. Clathria (Thalysias) venosa (Alcolado, 1984) (CNPGG-2410); K. Clathria (Thalysias) virgultosa (Esper, 1806) (CNPGG-2357). Scale bars, A–K = 1 cm.