New records of Indo-Pacific sponges from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India

摘要

Six Indo-Pacific sponges are recorded for the first time from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands: Agelas ceylonica sensu Thomas, 1981, Axinella donnani (Bowerbank, 1873), Dragmacidon australe (Bergquist, 1970), Siphonodictyon maldiviense (Calcinai, Cerrano, Sara & Bavestrello, 2000), Clathrina clara Klautau & Valentine, 2003 and Plakortis bergquistae Muricy, 2011. Among them, D. australe, S. maldiviense and P. bergquistae are indeed new records to India. These findings not only represent new additions to sponge fauna of India, but also highlight the importance of markedly overlooked sponge diversity of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.