First record of Ciocalypta (Demospongiae: Halichondrida) from Brazil, southwestern Atlantic, with the description of a new speciesAuthorCarvalho, Mariana De S.AuthorCarraro, João L.AuthorLerner, CléaAuthorHajdu, EduardotextZootaxa200330218journal article10.5281/zenodo.156619de500365-af5a-4a43-8374-e7dfbd94653e11755326156619Ciocalypta albasp. 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 albasp.nov.
possesses neatly transparent fistules with small habit (up to
2cm
), and a single category of oxeas.
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.
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.
FIGURE 2
.
Ciocalyptasp. 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).
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. gibbsiWells, Wells & Gray, 1960
(North Carolina);
C. penicillusBowerbank, 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
’
hyalodermaRidley & 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 albasp.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
’
styliferusStephens, 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.
MNRJ
501 Paratype
156
335.9
585/6
9.6
18
MNRJ
555 Paratype
185
447.5
761/5
10.9
19
MNRJ
779 Paratype
174
373.3
728/5
11.7
19
MNRJ
781 Paratype
204
410.9
780/5
10.0
18
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
,
sensuCuartas 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 nuculaSchmidt, 1862
(
DELAUBENFELS, 1956
; MURICY
et al
., 1991),
Chondrosia reniformisNardo, 1847
(SOLÉCAVA
et al
., 1981), and
Cliona celataGrant, 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.