ZooKeys
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Acanthella cubensis is massive, square to lobed with 2 cm wide lobes.
The surface of the orange-red sponge is slightly rough to conical.
Oscula are 4 - 7 mm wide, at the tip of the lobes, with transparent membranes.
Consistency: Soft and compressible.
Acanthella cubensis occurs in shallow coral reefs in Cuba, the southern Caribbean, Florida, and North Carolina.
In the FGBNMS, the species has a rare to moderate (1-100) distribution at 12 sites.
The species also occurs on mesophotic rocks in South Carolina, within the proposed Charleston Shelf.
Habitats: Coralline algal reefs, algal knolls, lower mesophotic reefs.
Notes: This species lives in deep reefs, both on exposed sites and in overhanging walls or caves, and sometimes burrowed in the sand among corals.
Similar species
Ptilocaulis walpersii, Ptilocaulis marquez.
Synonym:
Bubaris cubensis Alcolado, 1984
Literature reference:
Díaz MC, Nuttall M, Pomponi SA, Rützler K, Klontz S, Adams C, Hickerson EL, Schmahl GP (2023)
An annotated and illustrated identification guide to common mesophotic reef sponges (Porifera, Demospongiae, Hexactinellida, and Homoscleromorpha) inhabiting Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary and vicinities.
ZooKeys 1161: 1-68. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1161.93754
The surface of the orange-red sponge is slightly rough to conical.
Oscula are 4 - 7 mm wide, at the tip of the lobes, with transparent membranes.
Consistency: Soft and compressible.
Acanthella cubensis occurs in shallow coral reefs in Cuba, the southern Caribbean, Florida, and North Carolina.
In the FGBNMS, the species has a rare to moderate (1-100) distribution at 12 sites.
The species also occurs on mesophotic rocks in South Carolina, within the proposed Charleston Shelf.
Habitats: Coralline algal reefs, algal knolls, lower mesophotic reefs.
Notes: This species lives in deep reefs, both on exposed sites and in overhanging walls or caves, and sometimes burrowed in the sand among corals.
Similar species
Ptilocaulis walpersii, Ptilocaulis marquez.
Synonym:
Bubaris cubensis Alcolado, 1984
Literature reference:
Díaz MC, Nuttall M, Pomponi SA, Rützler K, Klontz S, Adams C, Hickerson EL, Schmahl GP (2023)
An annotated and illustrated identification guide to common mesophotic reef sponges (Porifera, Demospongiae, Hexactinellida, and Homoscleromorpha) inhabiting Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary and vicinities.
ZooKeys 1161: 1-68. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1161.93754
