NO. 17 NEW SPONGES— DE LAUBENFELS 3 



February 3, 1933, 46 to 90 fathoms. In addition to this specimen, 

 I have studied the species freshly collected near the Dry Tortugas, 

 Fla. 



The specimen from Puerto Rico is lamellate, 3 by 20 by 35 mm in 

 size. As preserved in alcohol it is blue, and its consistency is much like 

 that of cheese, dense and easily cut. The surface is smooth, liposto- 

 mous, without any detachable dermis. The endosome is exceedingly 

 dense, with only small chambers and canals. The spicules are abun- 

 dant diacts, bent several times about the middle of each spicule. The 

 two straight ends seldom are directly in line with each other, which 

 (as mentioned above) may be accounted for on the basis that they 

 are reduced triacts or tetractinal spicules. 



This seems to be a well-marked species, with no very close relatives. 



Family ANCORINIDAE Gray 



Following Hentschel, 1923, this family is here considered to include 

 Theneidae SoUas. 



ANCORINA Schmidt 

 ANCORINA FENIMOREA n. sp. 



Holotype. — U.S.N.M. no. 22289. 



Other specimens. — U.S.N.M. nos. 22288 and 22297. 



Three or more specimens of this species were collected at sta- 

 tion 26, latitude i8°3o'2o" N., longitude 66°22'o5" W. to latitude 

 i8°30'3o" N., longitude 66°23'o5" W., February 7, 1933, 33 to 40 

 fathoms. 



The specimen here selected (because of its internal structure) as 

 the type is an amorphous mass about 9 by 12 by 18 cm. Each of 

 the others is irregularly ramose, with fingerlike projections about 

 5 to 10 mm in diameter and 5 to 7 cm long. The color internally is 

 uniformly drab. The exterior of the type specimen is only slightly 

 darker than this, but both of the other specimens have relatively much 

 darker ectosomes. The consistency is stiff, woodlike. The surface is 

 even, with optical evidence of contained detritus. The pores and os- 

 cules do not show. The endosome is very dense, almost completely 

 packed with spicules, only small canals and chambers occurring. The 

 megascleres are almost exclusively large oxeas, often as much as 50 /a 

 in diameter and more than i mm long. Smaller ones are also very 

 common. After careful search a few dichotriaenes with shafts about 

 45 /i, by 1,100^ long were found in the type, and in each of the other 



