Raspailia fruticosa var. tenuiramosa Dendy, 1905

Van Soest, Rob W. M., 2024, Correcting sponge names: nomenclatural update of lower taxa level Porifera, Zootaxa 5398 (1), pp. 1-122 : 49

Raspailia fruticosa var. tenuiramosa Dendy, 1905

( Fig. 5B )

Raspailia fruticosa var. tenuiramosa Dendy, 1905: 172 , pl. VIII fig. 5; Dendy 1916: 130.

? Raspailia fruticosa var. aruensis Hentschel, 1912: 372 (suggested by Dendy 1916: 130).

? Endectyon fruticosa aruensis; Hooper 1991: 1290 .

The variety was described by Dendy from the Gulf of Mannar, Sri Lanka, approximate coordinates 9°N 79°E (dried holotype BMNH 1907.2.1.65). The status of the variety, and of its possible junior synonym Raspailia fruticosa var. aruensis Hentschel, 1912 from the Aru Islands, Indonesia, 6.2064°S 134.3249°E, depth 18 m (holotype SMF 984), which was transferred to Endectyon as a subspecies of E. fruticosum by Hooper (1991), is still under debate. The difference with the typical subspecies according to Dendy (1905, 1916) is apparently the more digitate, densely bushy, smaller growth form, as opposed to the more loosely branching form of the type specimens of the typical variety described by Dendy (1887: 160, pl. XII fig. 2) from Madras, Eastern India, 13.0805°N 80.3°E (syntypes BMNH 1887.8.4.7–8).

Hooper (1991) did not discuss this variety, although he described Thailand specimens of Endectyon fruticosa aruensis and pointed out a few differences with the typical subspecies. Dendy himself (1916) synonymized Hentschel’s variety with the present. Sandes et al. (2019) listed all Endectyon species, including E. fruticosum and its varieties, but did not draw further conclusions about their validity.

The growth form and poorly available spicule data do not make specific distinctness of the present variety (and also Hentschel’s variety) likely. Accordingly, I propose to merge these varieties with the typical variety as Endectyon (Endectyon) fruticosum ( Dendy, 1887) .

Figures

FIGURE 5. A. Axinella profunda var. kurushima Tanita, 1961: pl. IV fig. 14, B. Raspailia fruticosa var. tenuiramosa Dendy, 1905: pl. VIII fig. 5, C. Acanthella aculeata var. inconspicua Thiele, 1898: 54, pl. III fig. 6, D. Hymeraphia geniculata Topsent, 1892: 115, pl. I fig. 13, E–F. Ancorina radix f. nanosclera Lévi, 1967, E. habitus pl. XVIII fig. 3, F. spicules text-fig. 13, G–H. Craniella cranium f. microspira Lévi, 1967, G. habitus pl. XIX fig. 2, H. spicules text-fig. 19, I. Craniella globosa var. anamonaena Tanita, 1968: text-fig. 15, J. Discodermia emarginata var. lamellaris Wilson, 1925: pl. 43 fig. 5, K. Geodia ataxastra var. angustana Von Lendenfeld, 1910: pl. 44 fig. 25, L. Geodia hilgendorfi var. granosa Thiele, 1898: pl. VI figs. 4i–k, M. Geodia japonica var. spherulifera Wilson, 1925: pl. 38 fig. 1, N. Geodia megastrella var. laevispina Carter, 1876: pl. XVI fig. 47.