Haliclona (Flagellia) Van Soest 2017, sp. nov.

• Main Author: Dinn, Curtis
• Format: Other/Unknown Material
• Language: unknown
• Published: Zenodo 2020
• Subjects: Biodiversity; Taxonomy; Animalia; Porifera; Demospongiae; Haplosclerida; Chalinidae; Haliclona; Snow crab
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3846637; http://treatment.plazi.org/id/03B33F6DFFFEEF28319EFB31FD8BFE15

Subgenus Haliclona (Flagellia) Van Soest, 2017 Haliclona (Flagellia) xenomorpha sp. nov. urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: 83A1F469-C799-4D43-865F-C9D9C593E7BA Type specimens. Holotype: ARC 81426, north of Brion Island, Canada (48.0568N, 61.50641W), 69 m depth, DFO CCGS Teleost RV Survey, September 17, 2018. Paratypes: ARC 81427, central Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada (47.9871N, 63.0248W), 63.5 m depth, DFO CCGS Teleost RV Survey, September 13, 2018; ARC 81428, East of Cap d’Espoir, Canada (48.3587N, 63.6829W), 49 m depth, DFO snow crab survey aboard the Jean Mathieu, August 17, 2018. External morphology. (Fig. 1 A–D). Massively encrusting with raised oscula. The sponge is very friable and is thus often broken into pieces upon collection. The largest specimens are over 10 cm in diameter, but no consistent growth form is apparent. Larger specimens are often seen fully encrusting small pebbles and may have shell fragments incorporated into the tissue. The surface is generally smooth in more intact specimens, while fragments are more irregular and porous. In less damaged specimens, a fine transparent mesh covers the surface, but this often collapses after collection. Oscula are <0.5 cm wide and are raised above the surrounding tissue. Below the surface, the sponge tissue is irregularly punctate. The consistency of large pieces is firm, compressible, but very brittle if pressure is applied, resulting in small crumbled pieces. The colour is pale yellow to light brown, with some specimens appearing pinkish. Skeleton. (Fig. 1 E, F). Confused, with a loose reticulation of paucispicular tracts which are irregularly connected by single spicules. Thick and thin oxeas do not appear to be localized in the skeleton. There is no surface specialization of spicules, but a layer of thick spongin is present at the surface in undamaged specimens. Flagellosigmas and sigmas are found throughout the choanosome, with regular sigmas often occurring in groups, especially evident near canal openings. Spicules. (Fig. 2 A–J). Megascleres are oxeas ...