Spongia Linnaeus, 1759

Van Soest, Rob W. M., 2025, Typification of Porifera described in the 10 edition of Linnaeus’ Systema Naturae, volume II, 1759, Zootaxa 5638 (1), pp. 1-65 : 9-10

Genus Spongia Linnaeus, 1759

Spongia Linnaeus, 1759: 1348 .

Type species: Spongia officinalis Linnaeus, 1759: 1348 , nr. 1072 (subsequent designation by Bowerbank 1862: 1119, cf. Cook & Bergquist 2002: 1053).

Remarks: Linnaeus assigned the genus to his Classis Cryptogamia and ordo Algae , with the definition: ‘Pili intricati intertexti’ (translation: fibers (literally ‘hairs’) intricately interwoven). In the 12th edition of the Systema Naturae ( Linnaeus 1767) he adopted Pallas’ (1766) classification and transferred the genus to the Animalia, Class Vermes, order Zoophyta .

The name Spongia is derived from classical Greek authors, major sources: Hippocrates and Aristotle, who discussed various aspects of their biology, fisheries and use for human purposes (cf. Voultsiadou & Vafides 2007; Pronzato & Manconi 2008).

The treatment of the species of the genus by Linnaeus (1759) is problematic because the listed species are very cursorily defined, and the names are not accompanied by the usual references of sources he considered representative for his species. Still, he copied the Latin descriptive ‘definitions’ from his earlier pre-1758 works ( Linnaeus 1737a and 1737b, 1745, 1749, 1753a and 1753b) and some additional works of other pre-Linnean authors, where these references to sources are indeed provided, thus making his 1759 species in most cases readily identifiable with later more explicitly described species of subsequent authors like Pallas, Esper and Lamarck. According to ICZN art. 3.2, such pre-1758 information may be used to further characterize species described later.

Of the 11 species listed as Spongia in the Systema Naturae 10 th edition, only Spongia officinalis is still considered a valid combination. Although all 11 species belong to a single class ( Demospongiae), and S. officinalis is a member of the subclass Keratosa, the remaining 10 species are currently assigned to two further subclasses, with two species belonging to Verongimorpha and eight to Heteroscleromorpha. In the latter subclass most (four) Linnaeus (1759) species belong to the order Haplosclerida , while two each belong to orders Axinellida and Spongillida . Curiously, Linnaeus subdivided his Spongia species in ‘Tenaces’ (= firm sponges) and ‘Fragiles’ (= fragile sponges), the latter being the two freshwater sponges, the former all the others.