Data on the distribution of the uncommon Mediterranean sponge Pachymatisma johnstonia (Porifera: Demospongiae)

Abstract

The sponge Pachymatisma johnstonia (Bowerbank in Johnston, 1842), surveyed mainly along the north-east Atlantic coast, is recorded for the first time in the Southern Adriatic Sea. The specimen is collected at a depth of 228 m, off the Gargano coast (Apulia, Italy). The present study analyzes morphological characters, skeletal elements (spicules), and habitat of P. johnstonia and discusses a comparison between the Atlantic specimens. Moreover, this record extends the distribution of this uncommon species in the Mediterranean Sea.

Keywords

• Pachymatisma johnstonia
• Tetractinellida
• Mediterranean Sea
• aphotic zone
• new record