(Schmidt, 1862)

Species Overview

Hymedesmia (Hymedesmia) veneta (Schmidt, 1862) is a thinly encrusting sponge originally described from the Mediterranean, but subsequently recorded only twice, from the W coast of Ireland and the S coast of England. Its live colour is unknown, but it stands out among the other Hymedesmia species in the small size of the chelae (microscopic examination).

Taxonomic Description

Colour: Cream-white in the dry state.
Shape, size, surface and consistency: Thinly encrusting. Size up to about 1 cm2. Surface smooth. Oscules small.
Spicules: (Hymeniacidon armiger spics) Megascleres: Ectosomal tornotes fusiform, oxeote: 175 x 3 µm; acanthostyles entirely spined, in a large size range but not divisible in categories: 75-220 µm. Microscleres: Arcuate chelae 12-17 µm.
Skeleton: Presumably hymedesmoid, but described as confused.
Ecology: Encrusting maerl, shells etc.
Distribution: Roundstone, W coast of Ireland; Plymouth; Mediterranean.
Etymology: venetus (Latin) = sea-blue, presumably referring to the colour of the type.
Type specimen information: The type is in the Berlin Museum, ZMB 4605 (a slide is in the BMNH, reg.no. 1867:3:11:88)

Remarks

The small size of the chelae form the characteristic feature of the species.
Source: Bowerbank (1882).

Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Porifera
Class Demospongiae
Order Poecilosclerida
Suborder Myxillina
Family Hymedesmiidae
Genus Hymedesmia
Subgenus Hymedesmia
Species Hymedesmia veneta

Status in World Register of Marine Species

Synonym of Hymedesmia (Hymedesmia) veneta (Schmidt, 1862)

Scientific synonyms and common names

Myxilla veneta n.sp. Schmidt, 1862: 71
Hymedesmia armiger n.sp. Bowerbank, 1882: 73, pl. IV figs. 10-17; Burton, 1930a: 499.
Hymedesmia veneta: Burton, 1930b: 532; Burton, 1957: 34

Bowerbank, J.S., 1882. A monograph of the British Spongiadae, IV. Ray Society, London. xvii, 250 pp., 17 pls.

Burton, M., 1930a. Norwegian sponges from the Norman collection. Proc. zool. Soc. London, 2: 487-546.

Burton, M., 1930b. Additions to the sponge fauna at Plymouth. J. mar. biol. Ass. U.K. Plymouth, 16: 489-507.

Burton, M., 1957. Plymouth Marine Fauna. 3rd ed. Porifera. Mar. Biol. Ass. U.K.: 26-36.

Schmidt, O., 1862. Die Spongien des Adriatischen Meeres. Engelmann, Leipzig: 1-88, 7 pls.

No distribution map was available at OBIS the last time we checked. Retry now.

You can continue searching for Hymedesmia veneta on one of these Web sites:

Fauna Europaea (animals) | IOPI (plants) | NCBI (genetic)

Google | Yahoo | MSN | Wikipedia