Jellyella brasiliensis n. sp.

(Figs. 20–23)

Type material. Holotype: UFPE 0 80, Pratagy (Sereia), Maceió, Alagoas State, Brazil, 9º33'55" S, 35º38'40" W; intertidal, on algae, coll. 0 7 September 2007 by A.G.A. Borba Jr. Paratypes: UFBA 1596, UFPE 0 35, UFPE 0 36, same data as holotype.

Diagnosis. Jellyella with lightly calcified lateral walls with uncalcified bands, no spinules in internal wall, narrow proximal cryptocyst and gymnocyst developed as two proximal small subtriangular tubercles. Frontal membrane smooth.

Description. Colony encrusting, unilaminar, lightly calcified, white. Zooids polygonal, rectangular, 0.296– 0.556 mm (0.437 ± 0.070) long and 0.190-0.500 mm (0.272 ± 0.090) wide; frontal surface mainly membranous with a small amount of calcified cryptocyst proximally and gymnocyst developed as one or two small triangular to conical tubercles in proximal corners. Cryptocyst proximal, regular, 0.019–0.086 mm (0.044 ± 0.016) long, with granulose surface. Frontal membrane smooth, without spines. Lateral wall lightly calcified, with uncalcified bands, finely granulose. Four multiporous mural septula in each lateral transverse wall, each one with 2–4 pore plates; distal transverse wall with one row of uniporous septula near to the basal wall. Operculum with lightly sclerotized outer rim, 0.049–0.062 mm (0.054 ± 0.005) long and 0.099–0.124 mm (0.111 ± 0.008) wide. Colonies formed by twinned ancestrulae developed from the metamorphosed larvae.

Etymology. The epithet brasiliensis refers to the occurrence of this species in Brazilian waters.

Remarks. Taylor & Monks (1997) characterized Membranipora by the presence of lateral walls with uncalcified bands and tower cells (sometimes present). Despite the presence of uncalcified bands, we assign the new species to the genus Jellyella because of its proximal gymnocyst, absent in Membranipora and characteristic of Jellyella (see Taylor & Monks 1997). The genus Membranipora de Blainville, 1830, is distinct in its poorly developed cryptocyst (often absent), lack of gymnocyst, and in having tower cells (sometimes absent).

The main differences between J. tuberculata and J. brasiliensis n. sp. are the shape of proximal tubercles (rounded and large in J. tuberculata; triangular and small in J. brasiliensis n. sp.), the presence of microscopic calcareous internal attachment structures (spinules and paired wings) in J. tuberculata that are lacking in J. brasiliensis n. sp., and the greater length of the proximal cryptocyst (longer in J. tuberculata and shorter in J. brasiliensis n. sp.). Membranipora membranacea (Linnaeus, 1767), reported from N Atlantic, is distinct in having larger zooids (0.58 mm long or more; see Winston & Hayward 2012) than those of M. brasiliensis n. sp., and in lacking gymnocyst.

Distribution. Jellyella brasiliensis n. sp. is found in shallow waters of Alagoas often encrusting green algae and, rarely, Sargassum sp.