256 THE SPONGES OF THE WEST-CENTRAL PACIFIC 



The color of the ectosome in life was dull, whitish to reddish brown, 

 and the endosome had the same dark color. The consistency was stiffly spongy, 

 crisp. 



The surface is smooth and has pores, 20 p to 30 p in diameter and 70 p 

 to 150 p apart, but the oscules, amazingly, cannot be found. 



The ectosome is very thin and inconspicuous. The endosome is very 

 much like that of the Demospongea, as is true of the genus Leucetta in 

 general. The flagellate chambers are numerous, and 50 p to 100 p in diameter. 



The skeleton consists almost entirely of triaxons of tremendous varia- 

 tion in size, and (as is often true in the genus Leucetta) it appears that there 

 are two categories of triaxon — a larger and a smaller. The larger category 

 has rays from about 100 p by 900 p to perhaps as much as 140 p by 1200 p. 

 The spicules in the smaller size range are also regular triaxons, with rays 

 varying from 9 p by 85 p to 12 p by 110 p. 



This species was described by Haeckel, 1872, page 118, from the vicinity 

 of Africa, also the Indian Ocean, and Australia. 



Leucetta avocado, new 



Text Figure No. 180 

 Plate XII, Figure b 



This species is here represented by the following : 



U.S.N.M. No. 23091, My No. M. 473, here designated as type, collected 

 August 17, 1949, by diver in the northeast corner of the lagoon in the 

 lee of Givry Islet at Kuop Atoll. The depth was 2 meters, and the sub- 

 strate was dead coral. 



U.S.N.M. No. 23118, My No. M. 500, collected September 2, 1949, by diver 

 in Komebail Lagoon northwest of Koror in the Palaus. The depth was 5 

 meters, and the substrate was dead coral. This species was fairly abund- 

 ant in Kuop Atoll and also in the Palau region. 



Text Figure No. 180. Spicules (triacts) o£ Leucetta avocada, X 182. Of the larger 

 triaxon, one of the arms is shown incompletely. 



