14 LEUCANDEA. 



Leucandra erinaceusj n. sp. 



This sponge is spindle-shaped and hollow. The body-wall is only 2-3 millim. 

 thick. The gastral cavity extends down from the osculum neai'ly to the base 

 o£ the sponge. Generally there is a cylindrical peduncle with uneven surface 

 6 millim. thick and 30 millim. long. The body-cavity extends down through 

 the peduncle, which appears hollow accordingly. The peduncle gradually 

 extends above to form the body of the sponge, which has a circular transverse 

 section, and is wider in the centre than at either end, where it attains a 

 diameter of 18 millim. The body is about as long as the peduncle, so that the 

 entire length of the whole sponge is 60-80 millim. At the upper end a circular 

 osculum 8 millim. in diameter, which is not protected by a frill, is situated. 

 The surface of this sponge appears hairy or villous, in consequence of the 

 diacts which project several millimetres beyond the surface, and which are 

 very close together. Alive, in spirit, and dry the sponge is pure white. The 

 inhalant pores lead into small subdermal cavities. The inhalant canals branch 

 in a penicillate manner, and extend mostly in a centripetal direction. The 

 exhalants are of a similar nature, and join to form larger canals, which 

 extend sometimes for a short distance tangentially below the gastral wall, 

 and finally open with circular vents 0*6-1 millim. in diameter into the wide 

 gastral cavity, which, having the same shape as the sponge itself, appears 

 cylindrical and extended below the osculum. 



Skeleton. — The bulk of the skeleton consists of very large diacts situated 

 radially and protruding 1-3 millim. beyond the surface. The other spicules 

 are small triacts and tetracts. there are about twice as many of the former 

 as of the latter. (1) Triad Spicules. Equiangular, with straight, slightly 

 conic rays, rounded at the ends. The rays measure, on an average, 0'2 x 

 0'0]6 millim. Intermediate stages between these and the tetracts are 

 abundant ; in some the rays are slightly curved in an undulating manner. 

 (2) Tetrad SpicmJes. Slightly larger than the triacts, the three tangential rays 

 often curved, angle between them and the fourth ray 110"^ ; rays average 

 0*24 X 0*02 millim. (3) Diad Spicules. Spindle-shaped, slightly curved, 

 obtusely pointed at each end, 1-4 x 0-08-0-11 millim. 



GEoaPvAPiiicAL Distribution. — East coast of Australia : Port Jackson 

 {Ramsay). 



Leucandra vaginata, Lendenfeld. 



Leucandra vac/inata, E. von Lendenfeld, " A Monograph of the Australian 

 Sponges. — Part III.," Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South 

 Wales, vol. ix. part 4, p. 1133 (1885). 



Solitary, cylindrical sponges, with relatively hairy inner, but nearly smooth 

 outer surface (compared to the nearly related L. aspera). Our sponge has the 



