Mycale (Carmia) amiri Van & Aryasari & De 2021, sp.nov.
Creators: name: Van, Rob W. M.
name: Aryasari, Ratih
name: De, Nicole J.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2021
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Porifera
Demospongiae
Poecilosclerida
Mycalidae
Mycale
Mycale amiri

description: Mycale (Carmia) amiri sp.nov.
Figs 33 a–h, 34a–h
Material examined. Holotype ZMA Por. 09737, Indonesia, Sulawesi, SW Salayar, E of N point Pulau Bahuluang, 6.4667°S 120.4417°E, sea grass bed on coral branch, depth 0–2 m, snorkeling, coll. R. W.M. van Soest, Indonesian-Dutch Snellius II Expedition stat. 171, field nr. 171/18, 1 October 1984 (live color green).
Paratype ZMA Por. 06542, Indonesia, Sulawesi, SW Salayar, E of N point Pulau Bahuluang, 6.4667°S 120.4417°E, sea grass bed on coral branch, depth 0–2 m, snorkeling, coll. R. W.M. van Soest, Indonesian-Dutch Snellius II Expedition stat. 171, field nr. 171/04, 1 October 1984 (brown); paratype ZMA Por. 06544, Indonesia, Sulawesi, SW Salayar, E of N point Pulau Bahuluang, 6.4667°S 120.4417°E, sea grass bed on coral branch, depth 0–2 m, snorkeling, coll. R. W.M. van Soest, Indonesian-Dutch Snellius II Expedition stat. 171, field nr. 171/06, 1 October 1984 (yellow-green);
Non-type material: ZMA Por. 07966, Indonesia, Nusa Tenggara, NE coast of Sumba, E of Melolo, 9.9167°S 120.75°E, reef flat, depth 1–4 m, snorkeling, coll. R. W.M. van Soest, Indonesian-Dutch Snellius II Expedition stat. 052, field nr. 052 / II/05, 14 September 1984 (dark brown).
Description. Small crusts and patches on dead corals (Figs 33a, 34a), branching octocorals and other marine invertebrates. Surface microlobate, smooth, slimy. In preserved condition no visible openings. Live colors dark yellow green or brown. Size of individual patches dependent of substratum, 1–1.5 cm long, 0.5 cm thick. Consistency soft.
Skeleton (Fig. 33b,b 1). Thin, lax tracts of megascleres, 30–60 µm in diameter (5–8 spicules in cross section) run through the choanosome ending at the surface with brushes of spicules. Overall, the skeleton has a low spicular density, except microscleres, which are abundant in the surface membrane and throughout the choanosome. Rosettes of anisochelae I are small (up to 75 µm diameter) and have only 5–8 spicules. The tissue of all specimens shows a dense mass of refractile granules. One specimen (ZMA Por. 07966) is packed with multicellular cyanobacteria (Fig. 34h).
Spicules (Figs 33 c–h, 34b–g). Mycalostyles, three categories of anisochelae, and two categories of sigmas.
Mycalostyles (Figs 33c,c 1, 34b,b 1), thin, with barely developed elongate heads and pointed opposite ends, 205– 275.3 –351 x 2.5– 3.6 – 5 µm.
Anisochelae I (Figs 33d,d 1, 34c), well-developed elongate shape, free part of the shaft 30–40% of spicule length, with upper median alae extended outward, lower median alae squarish, 24– 31.4 – 35 µm.
Anisochelae II (Fig. 33e, 34d,d 1), similar to anisochelae I in shape, 16– 19.0 – 23 µm.
Anisochelae III (Figs 27f, 28e), reduced lateral alae, upper and lower median alae nearing each other, 9– 11.4 – 15 µm.
Sigma I (Fig. 33g, 34f), narrow-shaped, thickness 1.5–3 µm, asymmetrical, with incurved endings, 48– 56.5 – 66 µm.
Sigma II (Fig. 33h, 34g), thin, symmetrical, 12– 17.8 – 21 µm.
Distribution and ecology. Indonesia. In sea grass meadows and on reef flats, often on other marine invertebrates, down to 4 m.
Etymology. Named after the late Ichsan Amir, formerly of the Research and Development Centre for Oceanology, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jakarta, Indonesia, in recognition of his work on Indonesian sponges (cf. Amir 1992). Ichsan unfortunately died from an accident preventing him from pursuing his intended studies on the Indonesian sponge fauna.
Remarks. The specific features of the new species are the three categories of anisochelae and two of sigmas in combination with lack of toxas and trichodragmas and the abundance of refractile granules in the tissue.
We excluded ZMA Por. 07966 from the type material because of its dark brown live color and the possibly related presence of numerous multicellular cyanobacteriae. The lower alae of anisochelae III in this specimen are slightly different from those of the type specimens and sigma II appear more robust. Nevertheless, the tissue with refractile granules and the overall shape and size of the spicules is similar to the other three specimens, which were all from the same locality. The slight differences between the type material and ZMA Por. 07966 may be due to differences in habitat.
description: Published as part of Van, Rob W. M., Aryasari, Ratih & De, Nicole J., 2021, Mycale species of the tropical Indo-West Pacific (Porifera, Demospongiae, Poecilosclerida), pp. 1-212 in Zootaxa 4912 (1) on pages 54-57, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4912.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/4450930