Delectona madreporica n. sp. (porifera, demospongiae) boring the corallites of some scleractinians from the ligurian sea

Abstract

A new species of sponge, belonging to the genus Delectona, has been observed in the corallites of Leptopsammia pruvoti and Madracis pharensis living in semidark caves on the Portofino Promontory (Ligurian Sea). The species, here described as Delectona madreporica, has a spicular complement composed of rhabds, which are very irregular in shape and size and derived from fusiform amphiasters, by oxyasters derived from slender amphiasters and by toxiform, sometimes centrotylote, microxeas. The taxonomic position of this species is discussed. © 1997 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.