Dysidea tupha (Martens, 1824)

Manconi, Renata, Cadeddu, Barbara, Ledda, Fabio & Pronzato, Roberto, 2013, An overview of the Mediterranean cave-dwelling horny sponges (Porifera, Demospongiae), ZooKeys 281, pp. 1-68 : 17

Dysidea tupha (Martens, 1824) Fig. 11

Spongia tupha Martens, 1824: 534.

Description.

Growth form as a meshed irregular network of cylindrical processes (8-10 cm in length, 05-1 cm in diameter) lying on the substratum, rarely erected in some parts. Colour whitish to pale-light brown. Surface finely and irregularly conulose (0.3-1 mm high and apart). Oscules small (1 mm) and irregularly scattered. Skeleton network with irregular or quadrangular meshes (ca. 0.5 mm) with ascending primary fibres (80-120 µm) supporting conules. Primaries moderately charged of mineral materials; secondary fibres slim (15-40 µm) and almost free of sand grains.

Habitat.

Cave, rocky/detritic/muddy bottom, coralligenous community, lagoon. Bathymetric range 1-450 m.

Mediterranean caves.

Mitigliano Cave (Central Tyrrhenian Sea); Tunnel of Cani Islands, Tunnel of Tabarka (Sicily Channel) ( Balduzzi et al. 1989; Ben Mustapha et al. 2002, 2003; Pronzato and Manconi 2011).