Cladocroce caelum, Santos, George Garcia, Silva, Lícia Pires Da, Alliz, Adélia & Pinheiro, Ulisses, 2014

Santos, George Garcia, Silva, Lícia Pires Da, Alliz, Adélia & Pinheiro, Ulisses, 2014, Cladocroce caelum sp. nov. from the Brazilian coast; first record of the genus in the South Atlantic, Zootaxa 3847 (2), pp. 297-300 : 297-298

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.3847.2.10

publication LSID

lsid:zoobank.org:pub:24C656B4-CD4B-4303-AEA2-EDDEE6C39AFE

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5682244

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03A33370-CC6C-1B6A-FF6F-7B26D7ABD6BA

treatment provided by

Plazi

scientific name

Cladocroce caelum
status

sp. nov.

Cladocroce caelum View in CoL sp. nov.

Holotype. UFPEPOR 1450, Enseada dos Corais Beach (8°19'23"S, 34°56'57"W), Cabo de Santo Agostinho Municipality, Pernambuco State, Brazil, 1 m depth, col. U. Pinheiro and G. G. Santos, (26.XI.2012). Paratype. UFPEPOR 1628, Baía da Traição Municipality (6°41'19"S, 34°55'60"W), Paraíba State, Brazil, 1 m depth, col. G. G. Santos, (07.XI.2013).

Description ( Figure 1 View FIGURE 1 ). Massive shape with tubular projections, partially fused in the base, large apical osculum (1.5–3 mm in diameter). The holotype is 3.4 cm high, 2.8 cm wide. Individual tubes are approximately 6 mm in diameter. Conulose surface, consistency is compressible and fragile. Color in life is sky blue, and after preservation it becomes beige ( Fig. 1 View FIGURE 1 A, B). There is no special ectosomal skeleton but a tangential isotropic unispicular reticulation of oxeas forming tracts 38–80 µm in diameter ( Fig. 1 View FIGURE 1 C). The choanosomal skeleton is thick, unispicular, interspersed by many choanosomal spaces and reinforced by pauci- to multispicular tracts 24–72 µm in diameter ( Fig. 1 View FIGURE 1 D, E). Spongin is scarce, cementing the tracts and the nodes of the isotropic reticulation. Spicules are oxeas (holotype—67– 74.5 –80 / 3– 3.9 –5 Μm; paratype—62– 76.0 –86 / 2– 4.0 –5 Μm) sometimes slightly curved, smooth and with sharp tips ( Fig. 1 View FIGURE 1 F).

Distribution and ecology. Known from Northeastern of Brazil (Pernambuco and Paraíba States) in shallow water at 1 m depth.

Etymology. Named caelum which means sky in latin.

Remarks: Cladocroce caelum sp. nov. is the first record of the genus from the South Atlantic. This species is allocated to Cladocroce based on the presence of a choanosomal skeleton reinforced by multispicular primary tracts ( De Weerdt 2002). The new species differ from others of the genus by possessing the combination of massive-tubular shape, blue color and generally smaller oxeas (see Tab. 1 View TABLE 1 ). Among the Atlantic species it differs from C. fibrosa (Topsent, 1890) , based on its vase shaped, grey color and larger oxeas (600 / 18 Μm); C. osculosa Topsent, 1927 which is lamellate in growth form and has brown color; C. spathiformis Topsent, 1904 which is tubular and transparent, with larger oxeas (375 / 17 Μm). Furthermore, these three species are from deeper waters ( Tab. 1 View TABLE 1 ), whereas Cladocroce caelum sp. nov. was found in shallow water which is unusual for this genus. Three other species of Cladocroce are found in shallow water: Cladocroce burapha Putchakarn et al. (2004) from Thailand, C. reina Aguilar-Camacho & Carballo (2010) from Pacific East Mexico, and C. aculeata Pulitzer-Finali (1982) from the Great Barrier Reef. Cladocroce burapha is tubularramose and has two categories of oxeas; C. reina is thinly incrusting and may have a green color; and C. aculeata is tubular, cream color, and shows a great variety of strongyloid oxeas as well as oxeas with mucronate, hastate and asymmetrical tips. Cladocroce tubulosa Pulitzer-Finali (1993) from the Indian Ocean is also a shallow water sponge and has small oxeas within the range of those of C. caelum sp. nov., but is a yellow tubular sponge. Table 1 View TABLE 1 summarises the basic details of the other eight species of Cladocroce , all of which are from deep waters and have longer oxeas than C. caelum sp. nov.

Cladocroce reina Pacific East Mexico / 3 Green or sky blue Cushion or Oxeas: 130– 151.7 –175 / Aguilar-Camacho & thinly-encrusting 5– 6.6 –7.5 Carballo, 2010 9

Cladocroce spathiformis Azores / 1165 Transparent Tubular Oxeas: 375 / 17 Topsent, 1904 10

References: (1) Pulitzer-Finali (1982); (2) Lehnert & Stone (2013); (3) Putchakarn et al. (2004); (4) Topsent (1892); (5) Hentschel (1914); (6) Levi & Levi (1983); (7) Topsent (1927); (8) Lundbeck (1902); (9) Aguilar-Camacho & Carballo (2010); (10) Topsent (1904); (11) Pulitzer-Finali (1993); (12) Fristedt (1887).

TABLE 1: Comparative data of spicule size range, shape, color and provenance of valid species of Cladocroce Topsent, 1892. Values are in micrometres (Μm), expressed as minimum – maximum, or minimum – mean – maximum length / width. References are numbered in parentheses and listed after the table.

Species Locality / Depth (m) Color Shape Spicules
Cladocroce caelum sp. Paraíba and Pernambuco Blue nov. State (Brazil)/ 1 Massive-tubular Oxeas: 62– 75.2 –86 / 2– 3.8 –5
Cladocroce aculeata Queensland, Australia / Cream Pulitzer-Finali, 1982 1, 9 shallow water Tubular Oxeas: 120–160 / 4.6–8
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