Genus Haliclona Grant, 1835
Compiler and date details
2012 - John N.A. Hooper, Queensland Museum, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia(1994, updated 1999, 2004, 2011); Felix Wiedenmayer Naturhistorisches Museum Basel, Basel, Switzerland (1994)
Taxonomic Decision for Subgeneric Arrangement
- Weerdt, W.H. de 2000. A monograph of the shallow-water Chalinidae (Porifera, Haplosclerida) of the Caribbean. Beaufortia 50(1): 1-67 [5]
- Weerdt, W. H. De 2002. Family Chalinidae Gray, 1867. pp. 852-873 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. [859]
Distribution
States
New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia
Extra Distribution Information
Cosmopolitan.
IMCRA
Timor Transition (1), Christmas Island Province (23), Macquarie Island Province (24), Northern Shelf Province (25), Northwest Shelf Transition (26), Northwest Shelf Province (27), Central Western Shelf Transition (28), Central Western Shelf Province (29), Southwest Shelf Transition (30), Southwest Shelf Province (31), Western Bass Strait Shelf Transition (34), Bass Strait Shelf Province (35), Tasmanian Shelf Province (36), Southeast Shelf Transition (37), Central Eastern Shelf Province (38), Central Eastern Shelf Transition (39), Northeast Shelf Province (40), Northeast Shelf Transition (41)
Other Regions
Australian Antarctic Territory
Distribution References
- Bergquist, P.R. & Warne, K.P. 1980. The marine fauna of New Zealand: Porifera, Demospongiae, Part 3 (Haplosclerida and Nepheliospongida). Memoirs of the New Zealand Oceanographic Institute 87: 1-77 17 pls 4 figs
- Griessinger, J.M. 1971. Etude des Réniérides de Méditerranée (Démosponges, Haplosclérides). Bulletin du Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris [published 1907-1971] 3 (Zool.) 3: 97-182
- van Soest, R.W.M. 1980. Marine sponges from Curaçao and other Caribbean localities. Part II. Haplosclerida. Studies on the Fauna of Curaçao and other Caribbean Islands 62(191): 1-173 49 figs 18 pls
- Weerdt, W.H. de 1986. A systematic revision of the north-eastern Atlantic shallow-water Haplosclerida (Porifera, Demospongiae), Part II: Chalinidae. Beaufortia 36(6): 81-165 pls 1-10
- Wiedenmayer, F. 1977. Shallow-water Sponges of the Western Bahamas. Basel : Birkhäuser (Experientia Suppl. 28) 287 pp. 43 pls. [80]
Diagnosis
Cushion-shaped, frequently with oscular mounds or chimneys, branching, tube-shaped, repent ramose, rarely thinly encrusting sponges. Colour purple, violet, pink, brown, yellowish, green, blue, black, sometimes white, orange or red. Some species show a two-colour combination of a whitish ectosome and darker, purple or brownish choanosome. Consistency varying from soft, fragile, to firm, elastic, brittle or corky. Surface rather smooth and even, slightly to rather strongly punctate, sometimes slightly hispid. Oscula usually circular, flush with the surface or at the top of oscular mounds or chimneys. Ectosomal skeleton, if present, either a very regular, tangential, unispicular, isotropic reticulation, with three- to six-sided meshes, or less regular, subisotropic and rather dense or consisting of a discontinuous, rather open reticulation due to many rounded meshes. Choanosomal skeleton a regular, frequently ladder-like reticulation of uni-, pauci- or multispicular primary lines, regularly connected by unispicular secondary lines; it may also be a rather dense, subisotropic reticulation with many subdermal and choanosomal spaces. Spongin is nearly always present, confined to the nodes of spicules or more abundant, sometimes forming the dominant part of the skeleton. Megascleres smooth diactines, oxeas or strongyles, length usually between 80–250um, with a thickness of ca. 5–10um, rarely larger, up to 370 & 15um. Microscleres, if present, sigmas, toxas, raphides or microxeas.
ID Keys
Key to subgenera of Haliclona
(1) Choanosomal skeleton an anisotropic, ladder-like reticulation of uni- to paucispicular, ascending primary lines, regularly or less regularly connected by unispicular secondary lines --------------------------------------- 2
Choanosomal skeleton an iso- or subisotropic reticulation without a clear distinction between primary and secondary lines ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4
(2) Skeleton very regular, with straight, uni- to paucispicular ascending primary lines, regularly connected by unispicular secondary lines, spongin always present, at the nodes of the spicules or more copious, oxeas usually short, relatively thick, cigar-shaped, microscleres, if present, toxas ------------ Haliclona (Haliclona)
Skeleton less regular, with pauci- to multispicular primary lines, irregularly connected by unispicular secondary lines, with many spicules in confusion -------------------------------------------------------------------- 3
(3) Primary lines pauci- to multispicular, somewhat wavy, spongin scarce or absent, oxeas usually slender, with long, hastate points, no microscleres ------------------------------------------------ Haliclona (Rhizoniera)
Skeleton towards the inner parts of the sponge becoming a confused, subhalichondroid reticulation, oxeas usually long, stout, with hastate points, microscleres, if present, toxas, sigmas or raphides or a combination of these --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Haliclona (Gellius)
(4) Both the ectosomal and choanosomal skeleton show a tendency to form rounded meshes, choanosomal skeleton consisting of illdefined paucispicular primary lines, irregularly connected by unispicular secondary lines, with many choanosomal spaces, spongin scarce to more abundant, oxeas slender, microscleres, if present, toxas or raphides -------------------------------------------------------------------- Haliclona (Soestella)
Both the ectosomal and choanosomal skeleton a regular, iso- subisotropic reticulation ----------------------- 5
(5) Ectosomal and choanosomal skeleton a very regular, delicate, unispicular, isotropic reticulation, spongin at the nodes of the spicula, oxeas slender, frequently blunt-pointed to strongylote, microscleres, if present, toxas and sigmas, sponges usually soft, compressible but fragile ------------------------- Haliclona (Reniera)
Ectosomal and choanosomal skeleton forming a subisotropic, paucispicular reticulation, ectosome overlaying the choanosome very loosely with many subectosomal spaces, no spongin, oxeas usually rather stout, microscleres, if present, sigmas, sponges usually brittle, incompressible, fragile --- Haliclona (Halichoclona)
Diagnosis References
Weerdt, W. H. De 2002. Family Chalinidae Gray, 1867. pp. 852-873 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. [858]
General References
Fromont, J. 1995. Haplosclerida and Petrosida (Porifera: Demospongiae) from the New Caledonia Lagoon. Invertebrate Taxonomy 9: 149-180 [150] (New Caledonian species)
History of changes
| 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 | ||
| 06-Aug-2010 | MODIFIED |