ART. 4 



SPONGES OF CALIFORNIA de LAUBENFELS 



123 



Family DYSIDEIDAE « 

 Genus DYSIDEA Johnston 



DYSIQISA AMELIA de Laubenfels 



Duseideia amhlia de Laubenfels, 1930, p. 28. 



Holotype.—U.S.^M. No. 21424; B.M. No. 29.9.30.8. 



Type locality. — "Long Wharf," Santa Monica, collected by the 

 University of Southern California, Jnl}^ 18, 1914, 



Additional material examined. — On February 25, 192G, following 

 a severe storm, I found enormous quantities of this species cast up 

 at Venice, southern California. This is only about 8 or 10 kilometers 

 from the type locality. On the following day immense quantities of 

 it were reported, with specimens brought me for identification, from 

 near Ventura, about 90 kilometers from the type locality. I found 

 no other species of sponge in the wrack with this one, but it must 

 have been tremendously abundant, as bushels could have been col- 

 lected. In all the dredging and other collecting of the University 

 of Southern California, how- 

 ever, they seem to have taken 

 but one fresh specimen. In July, 

 1930, 1 collected a massive speci- 

 men, intertidally, at Point 

 Lobos, south of Carmel, Calif. 

 It is certainly a Dysidea and 

 probably conspecific with the 

 southern specimens, though dif- 

 fering in shape and having all 

 its fibers more loaded with 

 coarse sand grains. 



Description. — Shape, digitate, 

 somewhat ramose. Size, up to 

 20 or 30 cm in height, about 

 1 cm in diameter. Consistency, spongy. Color in alcohol, drab. 

 Oscules, inconspicuous, barely lOOjU, in diameter. Pores, not evident. 

 Surface, superficially conulose with conules usually less than 1 mm 

 high and less than 1 mm apart. 



Ectosomal specialization, a very thin dermis, not detachable. 

 Endosomal structure, a fibrous reticulation with meshes about 250/x 

 in diameter. Principal, or ascending, fibers lOO^a to 200/a in diameter, 

 cored, sometimes superabundantly, by scattered sand grains often 

 more than 100|Li in diameter. Accessory or transverse fibers 10^ to 

 25/x in diameter, often uncommon, usually free from inclusions. The 

 flagellate chambers are conspicuous, crowded together, and about 

 45/x to 55/x in diameter. 



Hifi* 



Figure 7Q.— Dysidea amllia de Laubenfels, 

 X40, a characteristic bit of the structure 

 of this species 



8 For Spongeliidae Lendenfeld, l)ecause Dysiden supplants Spongelia. 



