A guide to the deep-water sponges of - NMFS Scientific Publications ...

114 Professional Paper NMFS 12
94. Latrunculia velera Lehnert, Stone and Heimler, 2006
Description. This cone-shaped sponge has a flattened
smooth top that is typically circular but occasionally
kidney-shaped. On deck, specimens appear subglobular
because they have been laterally compressed. This
species has a smooth uneven surface, thick and leathery,
only slightly elastic, and easily torn. The interior is
markedly fibrous, somewhat similar to L. oparinae but
differing slightly in shape and clearly in the absence
of areolate pore-fields and the form of the anisodiscorhabds.
Diameter is to about 12 cm. Color in life is
dull brown; dark brown on deck.
Skeletal structure. SEM images of spicules are shown
in Appendix IV. The ectosome is a unispicular layer of
discorhabds, all arranged with their longitudinal axis
perpendicular to the surface. The choanosome is a
reticulation of polyspicular tracts of styles with some discorhabds
in between. Megascleres are styles with slightly
acanthose heads (500–540 × 9–11 µm). Microscleres are
relatively smooth anisodiscorhabds (37–43 µm).
Zoogeographic distribution. Locally common. In
Alaska – central Aleutian Islands. Elsewhere – not
reported.
Habitat. Attached to bedrock, boulders, and cobbles
at depths between 412 and 1009 m, but relatively rare
at depths shallower than 600 m.
Remarks. There appears to be another species of
Latrunculia in the central Aleutian Islands at intermediate
depths (i.e., slightly overlapping the depth ranges
of both L. oparinae and L. velera). Latrunculia specimens
in the depth range of 200 to 500 m should be a priority
for collection.
Photos. 1) Preserved (frozen) specimen collected at
a depth of 1009 m in the central Aleutian Islands. Note
that the specimen has been laterally compressed. Grid
marks are 1 cm 2 . 2) Same specimen as in photo 1 (far
left) in situ. 3) Specimen observed in situ at a depth of
929 m. The separation between the red laser marks is
10 cm.