New data of Tetractinellida (Porifera) in Aviles Canyon system and Le Danois Bank (Cantabrian Sea). Results of the SponGES Project
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1
Instituto Español de Oceanografía (IEO), Spain
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2
Uppsala University, Sweden
The Avilés Canyon System (ACS) and Le Danois Bank (LDB) are two of the seven case studies (CS4 and CS5) in the European Project SponGES (Deep-sea Sponge Grounds Ecosystems of the North Atlantic: an integrated approach towards their preservation and sustainable exploitation).
The ACS is a complex canyon and valley system designated since 2014 as a Site of Community Importance as defined in the European Community Habitats Directive. The complex comprises three main canyons of different morphostructural character: La Gaviera, El Corbiro and the Avilés Canyon. Le Danois Bank is a large seamount that rises abruptly from the Bay of Biscay abyssal plain at nearly 5000 to 425 m at its summit. This is the 1st Marine Protected Area in Spain since 2008.
SponGES_0617 and ECOMARG_2017 were the last expeditions for prospected sponges grounds in these areas, which were explored before during INDEMARES and ECOMARG projects.
Samples were collected with Rock Dredge and Beam Trawl during SponGES_0617 expedition while in ECOMARG_2017 we used Photogrammetric Sled (PS) and ROV for recording and collecting the fauna.
In the 1st expedition we visited 29 stations between 240 and 1525 meters. 16 were prospected with Rock Dredge and in these areas, sponges are the most abundant phylum, while in sedimentary bottoms of 13 stations prospected with Beam Trawl, Echinodermata was the most important.
The sponges of Order Tetractinellida in the sampled area, represents 33 % of total of samples, 21% of which are “Lithistides” principally of the Families Corallistidae and Siphonidiidae.
Species of Tetractinellida of this communication belongs to Suborders Astrophorina and Spirophorina; in the last, only one species of Genus Craniella is included.
Within Astrophorina 6 Families were represented: F. Geodiidae Gray, 1867, F. Pachastrellidae Carter, 1875 , F. Theneidae Carter, 1883, F. Thrombiidae Sollas, 1888, F. Calthropellidae Lendenfeld, 1907, and F. Vulcanellidae Cárdenas, Xavier, Reveillaud, Schander & Rapp, 2011.
In the Family Geodiidae, we had found 8 species.
Geodia nodastrella, G. pachydermata, G. anceps and Penares helleri, are well known and consistent with the descriptions made by other authors, but only the 1st is previously documented in this area. The genetics studies of others species such as Geodia cf. spherastrella or Erylus cf. nummulifer are still pending to complete the description.
Caminella pustula is know only from the south of the Azores archipelago and Le Danois Bank.
The most characteristic species in this area is the Geodia cf. barretti, filmed many times by ROV and PS in other expeditions, but never collected directly until last ECOMARG_2017. Its habitus is similar to Geodia barretii, normally with smooth clear surface appearance.
In our samples they have regular long hispidity caused for triaene spicules and founded too by Cardenas in the specimen of New England seamounts, but in this case they have short hispidity. We have too found small differences in spicules of our samples but it’s necessary to make more chemical and genetics test for identifying these Cantabrian species, that somehow represent a separate population.
In Family Pachastrellidae, we have 5 species in the area, being Pachastrella ovisternata the most frequent and very characteristic, the presence of a Pachastrella cf nodulosa that requires genetics testing to know if is the same as nodulosa. In our samples, it is very interesting the presence of Hexadella, covering the surface of the sponge completely. Others species present are Characella pachastrelloides and Nethea amygdaloides. One of the most interesting results are record of a the probably new species of Triptolemma genus.
In the Family Theneidae, we have one very abundant species, Thenea schmidti, not documented in this area before, maybe because in previous expeditions she was automatically identified as Thenea muricata.
Curiously, the small Family Thrombidae with only 2 Genus, provide us 1 new Genus and 2 new species for science.
One of them was been discovered before us, by Kellly and other authors in the South of Portugal. We have found at least 10 samples in 3 stations in Le Danois Bank between 650 and 676 m deep.
The other new species of new genus was founded in Le Danois Bank too. This species is characterized by oxeas of 2 sizes, spiny dichotriaenas and acanthodichomesotriaenas.
We have found 2 species of the Family Calthropellidae; Calthropella geodioides, documented before in this area by us in La Gaviera Canyon, while Calthropella durissima until now was only documented in the Azores Islands. Together with our samples, there is a wide distribution to the Cantabrian Sea in Le Danois Bank at 660 m.
The samples found in this area from the Family Vulcanellidae are the very well known Vulcanella gracilis and Poecillastra compresa.
We conclude that Le Danois Bank is a hotspot of biodiversity also in the porifera phylum, as already shown in other zoological groups.
Figure 1. Map showing the main operations during the SponGES 0617 cruise to the Cantabrian Sea.
Acknowledgements
This research has been performed in the scope of the SponGES project, which received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 679849.
Keywords:
Biodiversity,
SponGES Project,
Taxonomy,
Bathyal,
Sponge aggregation
Conference:
XX Iberian Symposium on Marine Biology Studies (SIEBM XX) , Braga, Portugal, 9 Sep - 12 Sep, 2019.
Presentation Type:
Oral Presentation
Topic:
Ecology, Biodiversity and Vulnerable Ecosystems
Citation:
Cristobo
J,
Ríos
P and
Cardenas
P
(2019). New data of Tetractinellida (Porifera) in Aviles Canyon system and Le Danois Bank (Cantabrian Sea). Results of the SponGES Project.
Front. Mar. Sci.
Conference Abstract:
XX Iberian Symposium on Marine Biology Studies (SIEBM XX) .
doi: 10.3389/conf.fmars.2019.08.00045
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Received:
14 May 2019;
Published Online:
27 Sep 2019.
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Correspondence:
Dr. Javier Cristobo, Instituto Español de Oceanografía (IEO), Madrid, Spain, javier.cristobo@ieo.csic.es