Family COELOSPHAERIDAE Dendy, 1922

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Family COELOSPHAERIDAE Dendy, 1922

Compiler and date details

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

Introduction

Coelosphaeridae Hentschel, 1923 is a family with spherical, club-shaped, tubular, and cushion-shaped growth forms. They are usually burrowing or excavating sponges, with long, open and/or blind fistules on the upper surface bearing oscula and ostia poking above the substrate. The ectosomal skeleton is a well-developed tangential crust composed of diactinal (oxeote and/or strongylote) spicules (Hooper & Wiedenmayer 1994: figs 5, 6), usually with swollen, smooth ends. The choanosomal skeleton is reduced, composed of a delicate reticulation of the same diactinal spicules that are found on the surface, forming tracts and cavernous chambers; this network usually collapses when the sponge is removed from water. Microscleres include sigmas (Hooper & Wiedenmayer 1994: figs 79, 80), arcuate and palmate isochelae (Hooper & Wiedenmayer 1994: figs 66, 67), toxas (Hooper & Wiedenmayer 1994: fig. 89), forceps (Hooper & Wiedenmayer 1994: fig. 91) and raphides (Hooper & Wiedenmayer 1994: fig. 109).

Sponges of this family are widely distributed at moderate depths, ranging from about 150 to 2460 m (Hartman 1982). Forty eight nominal genera are included, of which 25 appear to be valid, although some of these are only poorly known (e.g. Camptisocale). Only nine genera have published records for the Australian fauna.

Cornulidae Lévi & Lévi, 1983 was erected for coelosphaerid-like genera, such as Cornulum, Heterocornulum, Acheliderma, which contain palmate instead of arcuate isochelae, as found in typical coelosphaerids. More recently Bergquist & Fromont (1988) followed this usage for several New Zealand species, but the family sensu stricto is included here with Coelosphaeridae with modified isochelae (Cornulum is the type genus). Conversely, some other taxa originally included in the family (e.g. Paracornulum, Astylinifer, Fusifer) have myxillid or other affinities and these are now placed elsewhere following Hajdu et al. (1994).

The family is reviewed in Hentschel (1923), Topsent (1928), Brien et al. (1973), Bergquist (1978), and Hartman (1982). Van Soest (1984) defines and discusses the Coelosphaeridae, Hofman & Van Soest (1995), and Bergquist & Fromont (1988) revise New Zealand species (as both Coelosphaeridae and Cornulidae).

Diagnosis

Fistular-hollow, branching, massive or encrusting sponges. Surface smooth in fistular forms. Non-fistular representatives have their surface often irregularly pitted and punctate, but areolated pore-fields are absent. Skeleton reticulate, in fistular forms frequently vestigial. Ectosomal tornotes diactinal (often tylote). Choanosomal megascleres smooth or acanthose styles, occasionally oxeas or strongyles. In fistular forms choanosomal megascleres may be lost. Next to arcuate isochelae, microscleres include sigmas and raphides.

ID Keys

KEY TO GENERA
(1) No microscleres, just one type of megascleres -------------------------------------------------------------- Inflatella
Microscleres (chelae, sigmas, microxeas, trichodragmas, forceps, or écailles) present -------------------------------- 2

(2) Microscleres are peculiarly disc-shaped (‘écailles’) situated at the surface ----------------------- Lepidosphaera
No disc-shaped ectosomal spicules ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3

(3) Microscleres include forceps (labis) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Forcepia
No forceps ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 4

(4) Spiculation includes entirely spined oxeas -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5
No entirely spined oxeas -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6

(5) Spined oxeas are oxychaetes (microxeas finely spined all over) ------------------------------------- Chaetodoryx
Spined oxeas are megasclere-sized with coarse hook-like spines --------------------------------------- Histodermella

(6) Sponge hollow, bladder-like with leathery or parchment-like skin; normally with longer or shorter
tubular fistules -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Coelosphaera
Sponge massive, lobate or branching, but not hollow, bladder-like ------------------------------------ Lissodendoryx