Protosuberites novaezelandiae Kelly & Rowden 2019, sp. nov.

• Main Authors: Kelly, Michelle, Rowden, Ashley A.
• Format: Other/Unknown Material
• Language: unknown
• Published: 2019
• Subjects: Biodiversity; Taxonomy; Animalia; Porifera; Demospongiae; Suberitida; Suberitidae; Protosuberites; Protosuberites novaezelandiae; Bay of Plenty; Island Bay; New Zealand; White Island
• Online Access: https://zenodo.org/record/3716742; https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3716742

Protosuberites novaezelandiae sp. nov. (Figs 1, 2, 7, 8; Table 4) Material examined. Calypso hydrothermal vent field (Southern vent field), southwest of White Island, Bay of Plenty: Holotype — NIWA 32136, University of Kiel Stn SO192-2/3, 37.688° S, 177.123° W, 192 m, collected by TV Grab, 27 April 2007. Paratypes — NIWA 32135, 32140, University of Kiel Stn SO192-2/7, 37.688° S, 177.123° W, 191 m, collected by ROV, 28 April 2007; NIWA 52839, IFM GEOMAR Stn SO135/110, 37.688° S, 177.122° E, 189–192 m, collected by rock dredge, 11 Oct 1998. Other material. NIWA 52838, IFM GEOMAR Stn SO135/103, 37.695° S, 177.101° E, 179–181 m, collected by rock dredge, 10 Oct 1998; NIWA 52851, IFM GEOMAR Stn SO135/110, 37.688° S, 177.122° E, 189–192 m, collected by rock dredge, 11 Oct 1998. Type location & distribution. Calypso hydrothermal vent field, Bay of Plenty, New Zealand, 179–192 m. Description. Thickly encrusting on hard rocky substrate, appearing ‘stretched’ in places, about 5–10 mm thick, growing in patches of about 50–100 mm wide. Encrustations may give rise to low mounds, lobes, flabby expanses and finger-shaped projection, 5–10 mm diameter (Fig. 7A, B). Oscules are not obvious in life but appear to be at the ends of some fingers in in situ images. The surface is macroscopically smooth to undulating in life, with a stretched, slightly micro-knobbed appearance when out of water (Fig. 7C). Sediment catches in places where ectosomal spicules protrude beyond the surface rendering the texture slightly fuzzy (Fig. 7D). Texture in life slightly compressible, rubbery, corky, flexible. Colour in preservative ranges from light to dark cream yellow, to peach-coloured, to deep dull pink (NIWA 52838). Skeleton. Choanosome composed of wavy tracts of large tylostyles aligned longitudinally through the axes of flabellate and finger-like portions of specimens (Fig. 7E), diverging towards the surface in encrusting portions (Fig. 7F, G). Tracts range from about 100–1100 µm wide and are interspersed with numerous free tylostyles. ...