Latrunculia is a genus of

demosponge Demosponges (Demospongiae) are the most diverse class in the phylum Porifera. They include 76.2% of all species of sponges with nearly 8,800 species worldwide (World Porifera Database). They are sponges with a soft body that covers a har ...

s. It is well known for the diverse array of chemical compounds found in its species, including the latrunculins, which are named after this genus. Many of these are medically important, including anti-cancer compounds such as discorhabdins.

Description

The majority of species are large. They have special pore-areas and oscules encircled by elevated collars. The skeleton is formed by siliceous

spicules Spicules are any of various small needle-like anatomical structures occurring in organisms Spicule may also refer to: *Spicule (sponge), small skeletal elements of sea sponges *Spicule (nematode), reproductive structures found in male nematodes ( ...

in which one end is rounded. These arranged in an irregular network of loose tracts or bundles, supporting a crust of discorhabds, a microsclere typical of the genus.

Distribution and habitat

''Latrunculia'' contains cold-adapted species. They are common off southern hemisphere coastlines. Species are known from the Arctic and

Antarctic The Antarctic ( or , American English also or ; commonly ) is a polar region around Earth's South Pole, opposite the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antarctic comprises the continent of Antarctica, the Kerguelen Plateau and other ...

, the Atlantic and Indian oceans, the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

, Mediterranean, and Red seas.

Species

The following species are recognised: Subgenus ''Latrunculia (Biannulata)'' (Samaai, Gibbons & Kelly, 2006) * '' Latrunculia (Biannulata) algoaensis'' (Samaai, Janson & Kelly, 2012) * '' Latrunculia (Biannulata) citharistae'' (Vacelet, 1969) * '' Latrunculia (Biannulata) duckworthi'' (Alvarez, Bergquist & Battershill, 2002) * '' Latrunculia (Biannulata) gotzi'' (Samaai, Janson & Kelly, 2012) * '' Latrunculia (Biannulata) janeirensis'' (Cordonis, Moraes & Muricy, 2012) * '' Latrunculia (Biannulata) kaakaariki'' (Alvarez, Bergquist & Battershill, 2002) * '' Latrunculia (Biannulata) kaikoura'' (Alvarez, Bergquist & Battershill, 2002) * '' Latrunculia (Biannulata) kerwathi'' (Samaai, Janson & Kelly, 2012) * '' Latrunculia (Biannulata) lincfreesei'' `(Kelly, Reiswig & Samaai, 2016) * Green moon sponge '' Latrunculia (Biannulata) lunaviridis'' (Samaai & Kelly, 2003) * '' Latrunculia (Biannulata) microacanthoxea'' (Samaai & Kelly, 2003) * '' Latrunculia (Biannulata) millerae'' (Alvarez, Bergquist & Battershill, 2002) * '' Latrunculia (Biannulata) procumbens'' (Alvarez, Bergquist & Battershill, 2002) * '' Latrunculia (Biannulata) purpurea'' (Carter, 1881) * '' Latrunculia (Biannulata) spinispiraefera'' (Brøndsted, 1924) * '' Latrunculia (Biannulata) triloba'' (Schmidt, 1875) * '' Latrunculia (Biannulata) wellingtonensis'' (Alvarez, Bergquist & Battershill, 2002) Subgenus ''Latrunculia (Latrunculia)'' (du Bocage, 1869) * '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) apicalis'' (Ridley & Dendy, 1886) * '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) austini'' (Samaai, Gibbons & Kelly, 2006) * '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) basalis'' (Kirkpatrick, 1908) * Mud-clump sponge '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) biformis'' (Kirkpatrick, 1908) * '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) bocagei'' (Ridley & Dendy, 1886) * '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) brevis'' (Ridley & Dendy, 1886) * '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) ciruela'' (Hajdu, Desqueyroux-Faúndez, Carvalho, Lôbo-Hajdu & Willenz, 2013) * '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) copihuensis'' (Hajdu, Desqueyroux-Faúndez, Carvalho, Lôbo-Hajdu & Willenz, 2013) * '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) cratera'' (du Bocage, 1869) * '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) crenulata'' (Lévi, 1993) * '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) fiordensis'' (Alvarez, Bergquist & Battershill, 2002) * '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) hamanni'' (Kelly, Reiswig & Samaai, 2016) * '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) ikematsui'' (Tanita, 1968) * '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) multirotalis'' (Topsent, 1927) * '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) novaecaledoniae'' (Samaai, Gibbons & Kelly, 2006) * '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) oxydiscorhabda'' (Alvarez, Bergquist & Battershill, 2002) * '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) palmata'' (Lévi, 1964) * '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) tetraverticillata'' (Mothes, Campos, Eckert & Lerner, 2008) * '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) triverticillata'' (Alvarez, Bergquist & Battershill, 2002) * '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) verenae'' (Hajdu, Desqueyroux-Faúndez, Carvalho, Lôbo-Hajdu & Willenz, 2013) * '' Latrunculia (Latrunculia) yepayek'' (Hajdu, Desqueyroux-Faúndez, Carvalho, Lôbo-Hajdu & Willenz, 2013) Subgenus ''Latrunculia (Uniannulata)'' (Kelly, Reiswig & Samaai, 2016) * '' Latrunculia (Uniannulata) oparinae'' (Samaai & Krasokhin, 2002) * '' Latrunculia (Uniannulata) velera'' (Lehnert, Stone & Heimler, 2006) No subgenus * '' Latrunculia rugosa'' (Vacelet, 1969) * '' Latrunculia sceptrellifera'' (Carter, 1887)

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5500941 Demospongiae Sponge genera