Genus Thorectandra Lendenfeld, 1889

Museums

Regional Maps

• Halispongia Bowerbank, J.S. 1872. Contributions to a general history of the Spongiadae. Part I. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1872: 115-129 pls 5-6 [123] [junior homonym of Halispongia Blainville, 1830 (Porifera)].
• Thorectandra Lendenfeld, R. von 1889. Die Verwandtschaftsverhältnisse der Hornschwämme. Zoologische Jahrbücher Syst. 4: 1-93 [41].

  Type species:

   Thorectandra corticatus Lendenfeld, 1889 by subsequent designation, see Laubenfels, M.W. de 1936. A discussion of the sponge fauna of the Dry Tortugas in particular, and the West Indies in general, with material for a revision of the families and orders of the Porifera. (Tortugas Lab. Paper No. 467). Publication of the Carnegie Institution of Washington Washington 30: 1-225 22 pls 1 map [26].

 

Taxonomic Decision for Synonymy

• Bergquist, P.R. 1980. A revision of the supraspecific classification of the orders Dictyoceratida, Dendroceratida and Verongida (Class Demospongiae). New Zealand Journal of Zoology 7: 443-503 figs 1-25 pls [472]

 

Distribution

States

New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia, Victoria, Western Australia

Extra Distribution Information

Australia, W Pacific, New Zealand, Japan.

IBRA and IMCRA regions

IMCRA

Timor Transition (1), Northern Shelf Province (25), Northwest Shelf Transition (26), Northwest Shelf Province (27), Central Western Shelf Province (29), Southwest Shelf Transition (30), Southwest Shelf Province (31), Spencer Gulf Shelf Province (33), Western Bass Strait Shelf Transition (34), Bass Strait Shelf Province (35), Southeast Shelf Transition (37), Central Eastern Shelf Province (38), Central Eastern Shelf Transition (39), Northeast Shelf Province (40), Northeast Shelf Transition (41)

Distribution References

Diagnosis

Thorectidae in which the primary fibres are cored with an axial column of debris and the secondary fibres are clear. The skeleton is almost perfectly rectangular with huge mesh spaces (commonly up to 4.0 mm) and thick fibres (0.3 mm for primary fibres being frequent). The surface is heavily armoured and thrown into a series of ridges and hollows. The shape is always stalked, globular, fanshaped or tubular (Fig. 3C–D), with apical or fringing oscules. The fibre skeleton is relatively sparse, so the whole sponge inside the cortical armour is soft, easily crumbled, and collapsible. Excessive mucus production characterises those species thus far observed in the field.

 

ID Keys

See Subfamily Thorectinae Diagnosis

 

Diagnosis References

Cook, S.D.C. & Bergquist, P.R. 2002. Family Thorectidae Bergquist, 1978. pp. 1028-1050 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. [1035]

 

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
		12-Feb-2010	(import)