Aplysina Nardo (Porifera, Verongida, Aplysinidae) from the Brazilian coast with description of eight new species Author Pinheiro, Ulisses Dos S. Author Hajdu, Eduardo Author Custódio, Márcio R. text Zootaxa 2007 1609 1 51 journal article 10.5281/zenodo.178878 91f273fc-e30b-4c2e-ae55-e7157868defa 1175-5326 178878 Aplysina lingua sp.n. ( Figs. 16 C, 17B, 19, Tab. IX) Holotype : MNRJ 5476, west coral head (Parque Nacional Marinho dos Abrolhos, BA, 17º57'703'' S - 36º14'795'' W), 18 m depth, E. Esteves and G. Muricy coll. , 03/III/2002 . Paratype : MNRJ 5469, Parcel Paredes, south side, (Parque Nacional Marinho dos Abrolhos, BA, 17º53'499'' S - 38º58'034'' W), 10 m depth, U.S. Pinheiro and G. Muricy coll. , 05/III/2002 . Diagnosis : Elongate lamellar form, similar to a tongue, Light yellow colour in vivo . Description of the species The specimen has an erect, tongue form (long, flattened, lamelar) with 18 cm length by 4 cm width and 2 cm thickness expanding toward the apex ( Fig. 17 B, 19A). The small oscula ( 1 mm ) are spread over the entire surface, which is very finely conulose. The colour is a mixture of light yellowish-brown, light pinkish-brown and light-yellow in vivo , which turns into dark brownish-purple after preservation in ethanol. Consistency is flexible. Skeleton : Choanosome with a delicate and irregular network of spongin fibers ( Fig. 19B ). Bark with amber or reddish colour, thickness of 37–192 Μm (average 117 Μm) and thick pith that can be black or amber with thickness varying between 10 and 35 Μm (average 31 Μm; Fig. 19C ). Distribution : Provisionally known only from the type locality off the State of Bahia ( Brazil ; Fig. 16 C). Ecology : The specimens were collected in a maximum of 18 m depth in shaded areas of coral heads. Etymology : The name of the species is a noum in apposition and relates to its morphology tongue-like (tongue = lingua in Latin). Remarks : A. lingua sp.n. approaches more closely the morphospace of A. fulva , known for its plasticity and undelimited diagnosis. Nevertheless, the hundreds to thousands of specimens of A. fulva observed at many localities along the Brazilian Coast only very seldom possessed a comparable mixture of colours when alive, and none of them were observed to comprise a single branch with a flattened, elongate, lamelar form. FIGURE 19: A–C. Aplysina lingua sp.n. —Holotype. (MNRJ 5476) A. habit after preservation. B. Skeletal architecture. C. Spongin fibres. Scale bars = A. 2 cm, B. 500 µm, C. 50 µm. TABLE IX: Spongin fibres’ measurement data for Aplysina lingua sp.n. (in micrometers; S.D. = Standard Deviation and N=30). Specimens Locality* Fibers Piths Thinnest Mean Thickest S.D. Thinnest Mean Thickest S.D. Holotype Abrolhos, BA 60.0 147.7 192.5 35.6 10.0 20.5 35.0 6.1 MNRJ 5476 Paratype Abrolhos, BA 37.5 88.3 175.0 25.1 10.0 16.4 27.5 4.8 MNRJ 5469 *BA, Bahia State.