Australian Biological Resources Study

Australian Faunal Directory

Museums

Regional Maps

Family AGELASIDAE Verrill, 1907


Compiler and date details

2010 - John N.A. Hooper, Queensland Museum, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia; Felix Wiedenmayer (1994), Naturhistorisches Museum Basel, Basel, Switzerland; updated by John N.A. Hooper (1999)

Diagnosis

Growth form is variable, ramose, lamellate, tubular or massive. The colour is frequently orange or reddish brown and texture extremely tough but compressible. The skeleton is reticulate, very fibrous, with a well-developed system of profusely echinated spongin fibres, of which the main or ascending fibres usually contain coring spicules. The fibres are peculiar and unique in having arched transversely arranged collagen bundles. Spicules are styles with unique verticillated spines. In some species coring spicules differ geometrically from those echinating. Acanthoxeas or acanthostrongyles may also occur along with the styles in some species. The homogeneity of skeletal characteristics makes the external growth form of great importance and utility in identification.

 

ID Keys

See Order Agelasida diagnosis.

 

History of changes

Note that this list may be incomplete for dates prior to September 2013.
Published As part of group Action Date Action Type Compiler(s)
29-Mar-2018 15-Dec-2011 MOVED
29-Mar-2018 13-Apr-2011 MODIFIED
12-Feb-2010 (import)