Lemon Sponge (species: Leucetta chagosensis) in Lizard Island Field Guide (Lizard Island Field Guide)
Lizard Island Field Guide > Marine Life > Invertebrates > Porifera > Leucetta chagosensis (gallery)
Leucetta chagosensis
Lemon Sponge


©Anne Hoggett: Leucetta chagosensis on vertical surface at North Point, Lizard Island. 7 cm.

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Kingdom Animalia
Phylum Porifera
Class Calcarea
Order Clathrinida
Family Leucettidae
Genus Leucetta
Species Leucetta chagosensis

Show in taxonomy
Lizard Island area: all known taxa
Lizard Island Field Guide

Colours

    

Distinguishing features

A bright yellow sponge with a smooth surface and a single oscule per lobe with a raised collar around it.

Molecular research by Woerheide et al (2002) reveals two clades of this 'species' on the the Great Barrier Reef.

Size

  • Up to 10 cm (colony diameter according to Levy, 1998)

Synonyms

Distribution


©Atlas of Living Australia: Australian distribution

Web resources

References

References that assist with identification

  • Edgar, G. (2019). Tropical Marine Life of Australia New Holland Publishers, London.
  • Levi, C. (1998). Sponges of the New Caledonian lagoon. Institut Francais de Recherche Scientifique pour le Developpement en Cooperation, Paris, France. LIRS catalog number 90409.

Other references

  • Woerheide, G., J.N.A. Hooper and B.M. Degnan (2002). Phylogeography of western Pacific Leucetta 'chagoensis' (Porifera: Calcarea) from ribosomal DNA sequences: implications for population history and conservation of the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area (Australia), Molecular Ecology, 11: 1753-1768. LIRS catalog number 759.