Topsent, 1928
Definition: Encrusting growth form, rarely massive. The surface is often sculptured by subectosomal drainage canals running to oscules, and it characteristically bears a cortex of densely packed euasters and a single layer of erect tylostyles or tracts of tylostyles running to the surface. Megascleres are exclusively tylostyles, and microscleres include euasters (including anthasters and lophasters) or pseudasters (diplasters or amphiasters). (Timea stellifasciata spics)
Remarks: Two valid genera are recognised.
Source: Hooper's Internet Sponge Guide.
Genus represented in the area:
Timea Gray, 1867 (type species Hymedesmia stellata Bowerbank, 1866): characters of the family, with oxyasters and lopho- or pseudasters as microscleres; the genus differs from the only other genus Diplastrella in lacking a separate category of much larger sphaerasters located in the basal parts of the sponge .
Species included:
Timea fasciata
Timea hallezi
Timea mixta
Timea stellata
Timea stellifasciata
Species not treated here:
Timea acutostellata (Hanitsch, 1894), insufficient data
Timea irregularis Sarà and Siribelli (1960), NW Spain, deep water
Timea unistellata (Topsent, 1900), Iceland, deep water