Caulophacus palmeri Goodwin, Berman, Janussen, Göcke & Hendry, 2016, sp. nov.

• Main Authors: Goodwin, Claire E., Berman, Jade, Janussen, Dorte, Göcke, Christian, Hendry, Katharine R.
• Format: Other/Unknown Material
• Language: unknown
• Published: Zenodo 2016
• Subjects: Biodiversity; Taxonomy; Animalia; Porifera; Hexactinellida; Lyssacinosida; Rossellidae; Caulophacus; Caulophacus palmeri; Antarc*; Antarctica
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6055950; http://treatment.plazi.org/id/03D587C5F735FFDBFF24FF3D095A9945

Caulophacus palmeri sp. nov. Note: We have followed Boury-Esnault et al. 2014 who, due to molecular phylogenetic evidence, transferred the genus Caulophacus from Rossellinae to Languinellinae. They emend Tabachnick’s (2002) definition of Languninellinae as ‘ Rossellidae with strobiloplumicomes or if these are absent the concerned group(s) share so many morphological characters with a group bearing strobiloplumicomes that their common ancestry with loss of that spicule is most parsimonious…’. Type material. MNHNCL POR_15001. Dried sample, small sub-sample rehydrated with Decon–90, tissue section and spicule preparation on slides. Sub-sample of above deposited as BELUM.Mc2015.176 (spicule slide only). Cruise sample number NBP1103–DH59–sponge03. 20th May 2011 Shackleton Fracture Zone, 60° 32.25’S, 56° 49.07’W, 1810–1820m, Hein Dredge. Etymology. Named after the research vessel Nathaniel B Palmer which in turn is named after the merchant mariner and ship builder Nathaniel Brown Palmer (8th August 1799 – 21st June 1877) who was amongst the first people to discover Antarctica. External appearance (Figure 5 A). Hispid cream-coloured sponge with bulbous mushroom-like top and narrow stalk. The width of the top is 25mm and height 14mm, the stalk is 4mm maximum diameter. Preserved appearance: Delicately hispid pale peach lump with firm texture and distinct but not detachable, slightly hispid, dermal surface. Skeleton. The specimen has been poorly preserved (dried then rehydrated) and skeletal structure is hard to see clearly. Confused choanosomal skeleton of diactines and non-pinnular hexactines. Hypodermal layer of pentactines and pinular hexactines with pinular ray facing outwards. Atrial layer of pinular hexactines. Microscleres are present throughout tissue. Spicules. Choanosomal diactins with rounded, slightly tylote, spined ends and a small central swelling. 903– (1517)–3502 by 9.3–(18.4)–33.8 µm (Figure 5 B). Some larger examples were also present but as these broke in both the section and spicule preparations it ...