taxonID	type	description	language	source
2876AB0F6E27896EFF43FC2C9120A838.taxon	materials_examined	Type species. Stylotella flabelliformis Hentschel, 1912 accepted as Stylissa flabelliformis (Hentschel, 1912) (type by original designation)	en	George, Anita M. (2022): Tale of two species of Stylissa (Porifera: Demospongiae: Scopalinida) from the west and east coasts of India. Zootaxa 5178 (1): 72-80, DOI: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5178.1.4
2876AB0F6E278968FF43FB8D9413A89F.taxon	description	Fig. 2 A – M	en	George, Anita M. (2022): Tale of two species of Stylissa (Porifera: Demospongiae: Scopalinida) from the west and east coasts of India. Zootaxa 5178 (1): 72-80, DOI: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5178.1.4
2876AB0F6E278968FF43FB8D9413A89F.taxon	materials_examined	Type Material. Holotype. NIOPor. 3277. GA 05, St George Island, south Goa, 15.11 ° N 73.77 ° E western Indian coast, SCUBA 9 m, coll. Anita M. George (AMG), 29 January 2020. Paratype. ZMAPor. 17208, Hare Island, Gulf of Mannar, 9.19 ° N 79.08 ° E Tamil Nadu, southeast India, snorkelling 5 m, coll. AMG, 05 November 2000. Other material. NIOPor. 3277. GM 03, Palk Bay, Palk Bay, 9.37 ° N 79.05 ° E Tamil Nadu, southeast India, snorkelling 3 m; coll. Gowri, 09 May 2019.	en	George, Anita M. (2022): Tale of two species of Stylissa (Porifera: Demospongiae: Scopalinida) from the west and east coasts of India. Zootaxa 5178 (1): 72-80, DOI: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5178.1.4
2876AB0F6E278968FF43FB8D9413A89F.taxon	etymology	Etymology. Named after Dr Rob van Soest for his outstanding support to the author’s Indian sponge research, and for his monumental contribution to spongology as a whole. External morphology. Specimen erect, flabellate and planar with grooved surface; 10.8 cm width, 7 cm height and 5.2 cm thick (NIOPor. 3277. GA 05). Colour is reddish orange when alive (Fig. 2 A- in situ and 2 B- ex situ) and grey when dried (Fig. 2 C) (NIOPor. 3277. GA 05). The other two specimens (ZMAPor. 17208, NIOPor. 3277. GM 03) also showed the same colour in situ and ex situ. The live specimens (holotype, paratype and the other material) are with smooth furrows while bits of the above dried specimens are rough in texture. Tough surface irregular and highly conulose. Conules 2 mm high. Oscules minute and abundantly scattered on the surface of collagenous membrane. Ostia are in the crests of the furrows. Skeleton. Choanosomal skeleton, irregular network, inseparable, matted and fibrous formed of irregular, straight and gently curved stout, stylote spicules, quite dense at some places and vacant in some areas (Fig. 2 D). Extra-axial fibres arise from the axial part in an angle. The fibers are connected together in an ill-defined scalariform pattern. Extra-axial fibers in the surface look like toothbrush tips. Spicules. Megascleres. Styles of varied types (Figs 2 E – M): Five major types 1) Dominated, smooth, gently curved, stout styles (L: 421.9 – 624.81 – 785.16 µm, W: 10.65 – 17.60 – 26.37 µm; n = 30) (Fig. 2 E); 2) nearly straight, smooth, stout styles (L: 487.46 – 532.1 – 614.11 µm, W: 10.65 – 23.94 – 25.23 µm; n = 14) (Fig. 2 F); 3) abundant slender, smooth, and gently curved styles (L: 335.68 – 500.09 – 572.01 µm; W: 15.1 – 11.13 – 2.4 µm; n = 25) (Fig. 2 G); 4) abundant straight slender styles (L: 445.18 – 545.20 – 732.12 µm; W: 9.3 – 10.5 – 11.2 µm; n = 25) (Fig. 2 H); 5) hair / thread-like flexuous and curved style (L: 315.27 – 403.01 – 720.9 µm; W: 7.59 – 9.56 – 14.95 µm; n = 20) (Fig. 2 I); and one minor type: 6) smooth slightly curved, centre-bulged, ‘ pregnant-like’ strongyloxea (L: 325.5 – 441.93 – 544.42; W: 8.31 – 14.07 – 18.44 µm; n = 7) (Fig. 2 J). Also, few stout, strongyles (L: 421.9 – 457.04 – 501.68 µm; W: 9.3 – 8.31 – 18 µm; n = 3) (Fig. 2 K) and thin oxeas (Fig. 2 L) were probably contaminants or juvenile megascleres rarely found in this species. Both stout and slender styles have tapered tips with a blunt, rounded base; some have flattened, but rounded base. Some of the stout and slender styles (pregnant-like Fig. 2 J) have an abrupt bend in the centre. A set of styles is shown in Fig. 2 M.	en	George, Anita M. (2022): Tale of two species of Stylissa (Porifera: Demospongiae: Scopalinida) from the west and east coasts of India. Zootaxa 5178 (1): 72-80, DOI: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5178.1.4
2876AB0F6E278968FF43FB8D9413A89F.taxon	distribution	Distribution and Ecology. This species was found to be growing on rocky coral beds. The sponges were observed among turf algae on hard corals. The bright reddish orange colour is seen widely in St George Island, Goa. The region was dominated by reef fishes and gorgonians, Juncella juncea (Pallas, 1766).	en	George, Anita M. (2022): Tale of two species of Stylissa (Porifera: Demospongiae: Scopalinida) from the west and east coasts of India. Zootaxa 5178 (1): 72-80, DOI: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5178.1.4
2876AB0F6E278968FF43FB8D9413A89F.taxon	discussion	Remarks. Stylissa soestii sp. nov. is unique and differs from the type specimen (lectotype) of S. carteri (Dendy, 1889) collected from the Indian Ocean, Gulf of Mannar, by its varied types of styles, though the new species has the bright orange red colour that is similar to the other known species of Stylissa. Stylissa soestii sp. nov. possesses the major, curved stout styles (S. carteri: 400 x 21 µm, shorter than the new species), and gently curved slender, long styles (S. carteri: 1200 x 11 µm; longer than S. soestii sp. nov.). Additional types of styles include nearly straight, stout and slender styles, slender hair-like flexuous, and styles with a bulgy-centre. Moreover, when dried S. soestii sp. nov was grey while S. carteri remained dull reddish orange. Nevertheless, the irregular skeletal network of S. soestii sp. nov. with stylote spicules and no definite fibres matches that of S. carteri. The lectotype and paralectotype of S. carteri were examined by Alvarez & Hooper (2010), together with some other northern Australian species, and showed only a single type of styles (272 – 651 x 4 – 28 µm) with occasional strongylote modifications, differing from those of S. soestii sp. nov. Though the styles of S. flabelliformis (341 – 643 x 3 – 29 µm), redescribed from the Indonesian lectotype and paralectotype and abundant new material from northern Australia by Alvarez & Hooper (2010), also showed varied thickness – and thus closer to the new species – the absence of anisoxeas (255 – 596 x 6 – 27 µm), the presence of more than three types of styles in the new species from India, their respective morphologies, and their disjunct geographic distributions differentiate S. soestii sp. nov. from S. flabelliformis. Stylissa soestii sp. nov. also differs from S. massa from the Mergui Archipelago, Myanmar (Burma), the latter was grey or brown, massive, lobate and compressed and plumose while, S. soestii sp. nov. was bright reddish orange, soft and firm with a stout base, laminar, compressed and with grooved branches.	en	George, Anita M. (2022): Tale of two species of Stylissa (Porifera: Demospongiae: Scopalinida) from the west and east coasts of India. Zootaxa 5178 (1): 72-80, DOI: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5178.1.4
2876AB0F6E21896AFF43FB5095F9AFBF.taxon	description	Fig. 3 A – F	en	George, Anita M. (2022): Tale of two species of Stylissa (Porifera: Demospongiae: Scopalinida) from the west and east coasts of India. Zootaxa 5178 (1): 72-80, DOI: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5178.1.4
2876AB0F6E21896AFF43FB5095F9AFBF.taxon	materials_examined	Materials examined. ZMA. Por. 17154, Manauli Island, 9.02 ° N 79.13 ° E Gulf of Mannar, Tamil Nadu State, southeast India, 4 m, snorkelling, coll. AMG, 11 November 2000. ZMA. Por. 17193, Melakkal, offshore Muttom, 8.12 ° N 77.31 ° E Tamil Nadu, southwest India, SCUBA 15 m, coll. RD Sluka, 26 February 2002. ZMA. Por. 19235 Vizhinjam Village, 8.37 ° N 76.98 ° E, Kerala State, 14 m; coll. AMG, 3 December 2003. ZMA Por. 19207, Kadmat Island, 11.13 ° N 72.78 ° E, Lakshadweep Islands, 27 m, coll. AMG, 13 February 2005. ZMA. Por. 19243, Minicoy Island, 8.52 ° N 55.11 ° E, Lakshadweep Islands, 35 m, coll. AMG, 12 December 2005. NIOPor. 3277. Lak 07, Kavaratti Island, 10.55 ° N 72.63 ° E, Lakshadweep, 14 m, coll. AMG. 21 October 2019. Type locality. South India and Sri Lanka (Dendy 1889). External morphology. Specimens erect, fan-shaped, compressed and lobate with a broad base. Prolifically branched, thin lamellae with sinuous margins. Specimens 13 – 16 cm height and 5 – 10 cm width. Colour orangered and yellowish when fresh (Fig. 3 A); pale yellow when dried and pale pink when in ethanol (Fig. 3 B). Surface irregularly conulose and ridged. Smooth surface between blunt conules was found in the fresh specimen while the dried specimen was rough in texture. Oscules (2 – 3 mm) irregularly scattered. Skeleton. Irregular network of stylote spicules. Spongin fibres are semitransparent (133 – 140 µm thickness and mesh size 20 – 30 µm) and spicules are plumosely arranged (Fig. 3 C). Some areas of the network are opaque and some have vacant spaces. A small line of granules formed the external cortex. Spicules. One type of style (both thin and thick), mostly stout rounded base and slightly curved and tapered and slightly curved tips. Thick styles (length 320.5 – 410.17 – 465.89 µm; width 9 – 11 – 15 µm) are more than the thin styles (length 293.5 – 341.73 – 398.58 µm; width 9.93 – 13 – 14.5 µm) (Figs 3 D – E). Few oxeas were found (Fig. 3 F).	en	George, Anita M. (2022): Tale of two species of Stylissa (Porifera: Demospongiae: Scopalinida) from the west and east coasts of India. Zootaxa 5178 (1): 72-80, DOI: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5178.1.4
2876AB0F6E21896AFF43FB5095F9AFBF.taxon	distribution	Distribution and ecology. Common in the Indo-West Pacific, Eastern Indonesian reefs and Australia (Hooper & Van Soest 2002).	en	George, Anita M. (2022): Tale of two species of Stylissa (Porifera: Demospongiae: Scopalinida) from the west and east coasts of India. Zootaxa 5178 (1): 72-80, DOI: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5178.1.4
2876AB0F6E21896AFF43FB5095F9AFBF.taxon	discussion	Remarks. Stylissa carteri was the only record of Stylissa from the southwest Indian coast. It was originally described as Acanthella carteri (Dendy, 1889), recorded again by Dendy (1905) and Axinella carteri (Burton 1937; Thomas 1986) from the Gulf of Mannar. The new records of this species presented here from India, with erect, lamellate morphology, orange-red colour live condition, and irregularly arranged curved stylote spicules in a fibrous skeleton, match the type specimen of Acanthella carteri Dendy, 1889 and its junior synonym Acanthella aurantiaca Keller, 1889. Also, the present specimens match the morphology of Axinella carteri (sensu Thomas, 1986) from the Gulf of Mannar, with its lamellate and grooved texture, the brick red colour and semitransparent spongin skeleton, Conversely, spicule measurements of the present specimens from South India differ from those recorded by Thomas (1986), which had stout styles (396 – 641 x 21 – 29 µm) and slender styles (901 – 1470 x 7 – 15 µm), compared to styles of the current specimens which are less than 500 µm long and also the slightly curved points of styles were absent in Thomas’s (1986) specimens (which are probably an Axinella sp.) A detailed comparison of S. carteri with other Stylissa species from the adjacent regions are presented in Table 1.	en	George, Anita M. (2022): Tale of two species of Stylissa (Porifera: Demospongiae: Scopalinida) from the west and east coasts of India. Zootaxa 5178 (1): 72-80, DOI: https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5178.1.4
