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Published: 2011-02-18
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Molecular and morphological description of a new species of Halisarca (Demospongiae: Halisarcida) from Mediterranean Sea and a redescription of the type species Halisarca dujardini

Université Aix-Marseille, Centre d'Océanologie de Marseille, Station marine d'Endoume - CNRS UMR 6540-DIMAR, Marseille, France Department of Embryology, Biological Faculty, St Petersburg State University St Petersburg 199034 Russia
Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology, Iowa State University, USA
Université Aix-Marseille, Centre d'Océanologie de Marseille, Station marine d'Endoume - CNRS UMR 6540-DIMAR, Marseille, France
Université Aix-Marseille, Centre d'Océanologie de Marseille, Station marine d'Endoume - CNRS UMR 6540-DIMAR, Marseille, France
Porifera taxonomy Halisarcida Halisarca new species mitochondrial genome Halisarca dujardini N-W Mediterranean ultrastructure

Abstract

Halisarca harmelini sp. nov. is described from the northwestern Mediterranean Sea at depths between 15–65 m from coralligenous rocks. The new species occurs as thin sheets only on the bryozoan Smittina cervicornis. Morphologically, it is characterized by its thin layer architecture, skin-like, lusterless and smooth surface, a soft, very delicate and easily torn texture, and pale-yellow colour. At the cytological level H. harmelini is characterized by a complex of cells with inclusions: spherulous, vacuolar, granular, microgranular and rhabdiferous cells. The new species is clearly different in cell and endobiotic bacteria content and in external morphology from all previously described species of Halisarca. In addition to the description of the new species, we have conducted a thorough ultrastructural investigation and re-described the type species Halisarca dujardini Johnston, 1842 using specimens from different region of the North Atlantic, Arctic and North Pacific. To investigate the relationships between H. harmelini and H. dujardini on the molecular level, we determined the complete mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequences of the new species of Halisarca and compared it with that of H. dujardini. The two mitochondrial genomes are identical in gene content and gene arrangement but differ in size by ~1,300 bp (6.8%). The overall genetic distance between coding sequences is 0.1, much greater than what has been previously reported for individual species of non-bilaterian animals. The latter observation supports the new species status of H. harmelini.

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    ANNEX 1. Distribution of Halisarca dujardini species complex

    North-East Atlantic—English Channel: Roscoff (Barrois 1876; Lévi 1956); Ireland Sea: Church Islands, Menai Straits, Ruecallan, Rathlin Islands, Co Antrim (Howson & Picton 1997); North Sea: Pas de Calais (Muller 2004); Zeeland, Oosterschelde (Soest van et al. 2007); Skagerrak (Alander 1942); Norway Bergen (our collections); Baltic Sea: Cattegat (Alander 1942); Barents Sea: Kola Bay (96°09'16"N–33°28'45"E), Dalnie Zelentsi (69°07'19"N–36°03'21"E) (our collection); White Sea: Kandalaksha Bay, Chupa Inlet (66°17'32"N–33°39'39"E), Onega Bay, Solovetsky Inlands (65°05'38"N–35°41'39"E) (Merejkovsky 1878; our collections).

    North-West Atlantic—Massachusetts, Nahant (42°25'37"N–70°55'00"W) (Chen 1976); Cobscook Bay (44°54'N–67°04'W) (Trott 2004); Gulf of St. Lawrence (Brunel et al. 1998).

    Mediterranean Sea—along all the coasts from the Aegean Sea to the Catalan littoral (Metschnikoff 1879; Vacelet 1959; Uriz 1984; Voultsiadou 2005).

    South-East Atlantic—Western coasts of South Africa (Samaai, 2006).

    North Pacific - Bering Sea: Avacha Gulf, Pacific coast of Kamchatka, 52°46'36"N–158°36'25"E; Japan Sea: Gulf of the Peter of Great (42°54'50"N–132°38'44"W).

    South Pacific—New Zeeland: Devenport Wharf, from Auckland, Taranaki, Picton, Dunedin and Bluff (Bergquist 1996; Inglis et al. 2006).