Microporella funbio Ramalho & López-Fé & Mateo-Ramírez & Rueda 2020

Microporella funbio Ramalho & López-Fé n. sp.

(Figs 6 B–E, 7A; Table 7)

Material examined. Holotype: MNCN 25.03 /4209: DA08, Gazul MV, 486–487 m depth, 24 June 2010, INDE- MARES CHICA Project, IEO coll., on shells. Paratypes: MNCN 25.03 /4208: DA07, Gazul MV, 491–495 m depth, 24 June 2010, INDEMARES CHICA Project, IEO coll., on shells; MNCN 25.03 /4210: DA11, Gazul MV, 461–462 m depth, 27 June 2010, INDEMARES CHICA Project, IEO coll., on shells; MNCN 25.03 /4211: DA02, Gazul MV, 402–451 m depth, 21 June 2010, INDEMARES CHICA Project, IEO coll., on MDACs.

Etymology. The specific name ‘ funbio ’ is the acronym of ‘FUNdación BIOdiversidad’, a public organization that coordinated the projects LIFE+ INDEMARES and LIFE IP PAF INTEMARES, which made possible the present study, among other projects (e.g. ATLAS). It is used as a name in apposition.

Description. Encrusting colony, unilaminar (Fig. 6B). Autozooids hexagonal, longer than wide (Fig. 6B, C); frontal shield nodular with very small pores scattered on the surface (Fig. 6B, C). Orifice transversely D-shaped, wider than long, proximal border crenulate (Fig. 6C, D); six oral spines (rarely seven), hollow and thick (Figs 6 B–D, 7A), four visible in ovicellate zooids (Fig. 6E). Ascopore crescentic, with a denticulate edge, with proximal border raised from the frontal surface (Figs 6C, 7A). Single avicularium located latero-medially or slightly nearer to the ascopore; rostrum triangular with tip raised from the frontal surface, directed slightly latero-distally; crossbar complete (Figs 6B, C, 7A); mandible long, setiform. Ovicell globose (Fig. 6B, E), wider than long, not personate; ooecium surface nodular, similar to frontal shield of the zooid, without expansions around the aperture (Fig. 6B, E); proximal border with a smooth and arched rim (Fig. 6B, E).

Remarks. Microporella is a specious genus with almost 140 species, most of them recent (Bock 2019; 02.12.2019). Microporella ciliata (Pallas, 1766) is similar to the new species in having not personate ovicell and avicularium situated laterally between the ascopore and the midline of the zooid. It differs in having 1–4 oral spines, orifice with smaller proportion L/W (M. ciliata: 0.54; M. funbio Ramalho & López-Fé n. sp.: 0.78), ascopore without raised proximal border, and ovicell without an arched and smooth proximal rim (Kukliński & Taylor 2008). The most similar species is M. browni Harmelin et al., 2011 described from the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, which has 4–6 oral spines and similar avicularium, but the primary orifice has rounded and serrated (11–19 denticles) anter and proximal border with an irregular, slightly corrugated edge, larger frontal pores and personate ovicell, encompassing the primary orifice hiding completely the oral spines. The combination of the following characters—six hollow and thick oral spines, orifice with denticulate proximal border, ascopore with an elevated proximal border, single setiform avicularium, and ovicell not personate—distinguishes the new species from all congeners.

Habitat and associated species. This species was found associated with coarse and mixed sediment with MDACs, where species such as B. phylipiana, C. cidaris, F. chunii, sponges and sea pens (K. stelliferum and F. quadrangularis) also occur.