Family PHYMATELLIDAE Schrammen, 1910

Museums

Regional Maps

• Lévi, C. & Lévi, P. 1988. Nouveaux spongiaires lithistides bathyaux à affinités crétacées de la Nouvelle-Calédonie. Bulletin du Muséum national d'histoire naturelle. Section A, Zoologie, biologie et écologie animale [Paris, published 1979-1996] 4 10(2): 241-263 [245]

Introduction

Phymatellidae Schrammen are defined as ‘Lithistid’ Demospongiae with tetraclone desmas and ectosomal dichotriaenes (Pisera & Lévi 2002). The family contains three extant genera, all valid, with species known so far mostly from the Pacific. It is known since the Late Jurassic with numerous representatives in the fossil record. Recent species live in deeper water and are lamellar cup-shaped, club-shaped or spherical with a stem. Desmas are smooth to sparsely tuberculated, more or less irregular large tetraclones, which are usually poorly articulated. Ectosomal megascleres are smooth dichotriaenes; other megascleres may be oxeas. Microscleres are ectosomal robust microspined streptasters/amphiasters and choanosomal microspined streptasters/amphiasters with long slender rays. Genera are differentiated mostly by their habitus.

Synonyms are Phymatellinae Schrammen, 1910: 72. Phymatellidae Schrammen, 1924: 37 (Lévi, 1991: 79).

Diagnosis

Polymorphic; clavate, lamellar, spherical with a stem. Large regular tetraclone desmas (usually smooth) as choanosomal spicules; ectosomal spicules smooth dichotriaenes; microscleres are amphiasters (streptasters).

ID Keys

KEY TO EXTANT GENERA
(1) Lamellar or cup-shaped in habit .................................................................................................. Reidispongia
Nonlamellar in habit ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2
(2) Clavate with shallow apical cavity ................................................................................................ Neoaulaxinia
Spherical with stem and a bundle of vertical canals in the middle ........................................................ Neosiphonia

Diagnosis References

Pisera, A. & Lévi, C. 2002. Family Phymatellidae Schrammen, 1910. pp. 366-373 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. [366]

General References

Lévi, C. 1991. Lithistid Sponges from the Norfolk Rise. Recent and Mesozoic Genera. pp.72-82 in Reitner, J. & Keupp, H. (eds). Fossil and Recent Sponges. Berlin, Heidelberg : Springer-Verlag xviii 595 pp. [79]

Pisera, A. & Lévi, C. 2002. Family Phymatellidae Schrammen, 1910. pp. 366-373 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. [366]

Schrammen, A. 1910. Die Kieselspongien der oberen Kreide von Nordwestdeutschland. I.Teil. Tetraxonia, Monaxonia und Silicea incertae sedis. Palaeontographica Supplementbände Stuttgart 5: 1–175, I–XXIV [72]

Schrammen, A. 1924. Die Kieselspongien der oberen Kreide von Nordwestdeutschland. III. und letzter Teil. Monographien zur Geologie und Paläontologie 1 2: 1–159, I–XVII [37]

History of changes