Topsentia sp (4695) - Marquises - Fatu Hiva

Topsentia sp. (OTU QM4695) OTU QM4695

Suberitida Halichondriidae

External characters

thickly encrusting, forms mat, ~5 cm (d).

Colour

white in life; white in ethanol.

Skeletal Characters

Oscules apical to raised sections of sponge.
Texture brittle, thick, detachable surface layer covers soft, friable, pulpy choanosomal region.
Surface_Ornamentation smooth and undulating, rising in sections to form mounds with apical oscules.
Ectosomal_Skeleton small oxeas in dense bouquets, forming thick crust.
Choanosomal_Skeleton larger oxeas and strongyloxea scattered throughout, without any clear organisation; mesohyl light, patchy throughout.
Megascleres oxeas: 2 classes; strongyloxeas.
Microscleres nil.
Mudmap_Author P Sutcliffe
Mudmap_Editor Kathryn Hall

Distribution

In French Polynesia: west Tuamotu and south Marquesas islands

Ecology and habitat

On the outer reef slope in Tuamotu. On the rocky wall / slope in Marquesas.

P. Sutcliffe (2014). QM4695 Topsentia sp. (OTU QM4695) . In: Hall, K.A. & Hooper, J.N.A. (2014) SpongeMaps: an online community for taxonomy and identification of sponges. (Available at http://www.spongemaps.org).