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Demospongiae > Haplosclerida > Niphatidae > Niphates sp.-“orange thick encrustation”

Observed Characteristics:

Color:

  • orange

Morphology:

  • encrusting

Consistency:

  • tough

Locations:

  • Bahamas

Species Description and Notes

Notes: Pale orange thick encrustation with oscules on lobes. Consistency firmly compressible, elastic. Spicules are strongyles in a wide size range, embedded in a reticulation of spongin fibers. Assignation to Niphates is tentative. Another Haplosclerid with yellowish-orangish color and strongyle spicules, with which detailed comparisons are pending, is Niphates lutea Lehnert & van Soest, 1999.

Tissue and Spicule Images

Images

sp.-“orange thick encrustation”

  • Location: Northern Exuma Cays, Bahamas
  • Photographer: Sven Zea