Family CLADORHIZIDAE Dendy, 1922

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Introduction

The family Cladorhizidae Dendy, 1922 is a group of small symmetrical sponges mostly found in the abyssal zones, and having diagonal, radiating supporting processes and basal root adaptations for living in soft sediments. The choanosomal skeleton consists of an axis comprising monactinal (styles) or occasionally diactinal megascleres (oxeas; Hooper & Wiedenmayer 1994: figs 5, 8, 17, 18), from which radiating extra-axial tracts diverge to the ectosome. Microscleres include isochelae (Hooper & Wiedenmayer 1994: figs 66–68), sigmas (Hooper & Wiedenmayer 1994: figs 79, 80), forceps (Hooper & Wiedenmayer 1994: fig. 91) or spear-shaped microstyles (Hooper & Wiedenmayer 1994: fig. 113).

Members of this poecilosclerid family are found generally at abyssal depths from 150 to at least 7000 m in all oceans (Hartman 1982). There are thirteen nominal genera included in the family, of which only seven are currently recognised as valid, two of which there are published records for the Australian fauna. Recent discoveries of this remarkable fauna continue to escalate, including diagnosis of three of the seven currently recognised genera (e.g. Vacelet et al. 2006; Kelly & Vacelet 2011; Rios et al. 2011)

The Cladorhizidae is reviewed in Brien et al. (1973); Bergquist (1978); and Hartman (1982). Koltun (1966) gives a resumé and discussion of the family; and a definition and revision of New Zealand species are given by Bergquist & Fromont (1988).

Diagnosis

Sponges usually small, symmetrical, mostly in deep water, with diagonal, radiating supporting processes and basal root adaptations for living in soft sediments. Axial skeleton composed of monactinal or diactinal megascleres, from which radiating extra-axial tracts diverge to the ectosome. Microscleres include (an)isochelae, sigmas, forceps or micro(subtylo)styles (microspined, spear-shaped in a few cases). Considerable reduction to complete loss of the choanocyte layer is known for some species, being associated with an adaptation to carnivory, preying on relatively large food items.

ID Keys

KEY TO GENERA
(1) Anisochelae ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2
Unguiferate isochelae ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chondrocladia

(2) Palmate anisochelae ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Asbestopluma
Anchorate or unguiferate anisochelae ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Cladorhiza

(New Genera added post 2002):
Genus Abyssocladia Lévi, 1964
Genus Cercicladia Rios, Kelly & Vacelet, 2011
Genus Lollipocladia Vacelet, 2008
Genus Neocladia Koltun, 1970

(New Genera added post 2020):
Genus Lycopodina Lundbeck, 1905
Genus Euchelipluma Topsent, 1909

Diagnosis References

Ekins, M., Erpenbeck, D. & Hooper, J.N.A. 2020. Carnivorous sponges from the Australian Bathyal and Abyssal zones collected during the RV Investigator 2017 Expedition. Zootaxa 4774(1): 001–159

Hajdu, E. & Vacelet, J. 2002. Family Cladorhizidae Dendy, 1922. pp. 636-641 in Hooper, J.N.A. & van Soest, R.W.M. (eds). Systema Porifera: A guide to the classification of sponges. New York : Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers Vol. 1. [636]

General References

Bergquist, P.R. 1978. Sponges. London : Hutchinson 268 pp. 12 pls 81 figs 15 tables.

Bergquist, P.R. & Fromont, J. 1988. The marine fauna of New Zealand: Porifera, Demospongiae, Part 4 (Poecilosclerida). New Zealand Oceanographic Institute Memoir 96: 1-197 pls 1-57

Brien, P., Lévi, C., Sarà, M., Tuzet, O. & Vacelet, J. 1973. Spongiaires. pp. 1-716 485 figs in Grassé, P.P. (ed.). Traité de Zoologie. Anatomie, Systématique, Biologie. Paris : Masson et Cie Vol. 3(1).

Dendy, A. 1922. Report on the Sigmatotetraxonida collected by H.M.S. Sealark in the Indian Ocean. In Report of the Percy Sladen Trust Expedition to the Indian Ocean in 1905. Vol. 7. Transactions of the Linnean Society of London 2nd Series Zoology 18: 1-164 pls 1-18 [1]

Ekins, M., Erpenbeck, D. & Hooper, J.N.A. 2020. Carnivorous sponges from the Australian Bathyal and Abyssal zones collected during the RV Investigator 2017 Expedition. Zootaxa 4774(1): 001–159

Hartman, W.D. 1982. Porifera. pp. 640-666 in Parker, S.P. (ed.). Synopsis and Classification of Living Organisms. New York : McGraw-Hill Vol. 1.

Kelly, M. & Vacelet, J. 2011. Three new remarkable carnivorous sponges (Porifera, Cladorhizidae) from deep New Zealand and Australian (Macquarie Island) waters. Zootaxa 2976: 55-68 [55]

Koltun, V.M. 1964. Sponges of the Antarctic. Part 1. Tetraxonida and Cornacuspongida. 6-116, 428-433 (systematic index), pls 1-15 in Pavlovskii, E.P., Andriyashev, A.P. & Ushakov, P.V. (eds). Academy of Sciences of the U.S.S.R., Zoological Institute: Explorations of the fauna of the seas II (X). Biological Reports of the Soviet Antarctic Expedition (1955–1958). Moscow : Izdatel'stvo ‘Nauka' Vol. 2. [in Russian]

Rios, P., Kelly, M. & Vacelet, J. 2011. Cercicladia australis, a new carnivorous sponge with novel chelae from the Tasman Basin and the Argentine Patagonian Margin (Porifera, Cladorhiozidae). Zootaxa 3131: 52-62 [52]

Vacelet, J. 2006. New carnivorous sponges (Porifera, Poecilosclerida) collected from manned submersibles in the deep Pacific. Journal of the Linnean Society of London, Zoology 148: 553-584 [553]

van Soest, R.W.M. 1984. Marine sponges from Curaçao and other Caribbean localities. Part III. Poecilosclerida. Studies on the Fauna of Curaçao and other Caribbean Islands 66(199): 1-167 pls 1-10

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