Family Euplectellidae Gray, 1867 (Hexactinellida, Lyssacinosida) of the New Zealand Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ)
is reviewed, inventoried from existing and new collections, and revised where necessary. Collections within the NIWA
Invertebrate Collection (NIC), the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa (NMNZ), and specimens from the
NORFANZ mid-Tasman Sea survey, housed at the Queensland Museum (QM), have yielded well over 250 catalogued
specimens, some of which are from the Australian EEZ and International waters.
Prior to this work, our knowledge of euplectellid glass sponges in New Zealand waters was limited to three species,
Regadrella okinoseana Ijima, 1896, Walteria leuckarti Ijima, 1896 and W. flemmingi Schulze, 1885, and eight undescribed
species listed in Kelly et al. (2009). In 2017, a new species of Atlantisella, A. lorraineae Reiswig & Kelly, 2017, was
described from Tangaroa Seamount on the Kermadec Ridge. This list of four known species has now been expanded
to a total of 26 species, including an additional four species known from other locations and 18 new species. These 26
species represent each of the three subfamilies, Euplectellinae Gray, 1867, Corbitellinae Gray, 1872, and Bolosominae
Tabachnick, 2002, and span 14 genera, three of which are new to science (Plumicoma gen. nov., Amphoreus gen. nov.,
Trychella gen. nov.).
Four additional species, previously unknown in the New Zealand region, are redescribed: Euplectella imperialis Ijima,
1894; E. plumosum Tabachnick & Lévi, 2004; Bolosoma charcoti Tabachnick & Lévi, 2004; B. biocalum Tabachnick
& Lévi, 2004. Three species from the Norfolk Ridge south of New Caledonia have been included as they are considered
highly likely to be present in the New Zealand region, but have, thus far, not been collected: Placopegma plumicomum
Tabachnick & Lévi, 2004; Bolosoma meridionale Tabachnick & Lévi, 2004, and Hyalostylus monomicrosclerus Tabachnick
& Lévi, 2004.
Numerous records from the Australian EEZ occur in this work: Euplectella imperialis from Lord Howe Plateau and the
Great Australian Bight and Walteria flemmingi from the latter locality; E. plumosum from Lord Howe Rise and Regadrella
okinoseana from Lord Howe Rise, Norfolk Basin and Seamount 7, South Macquarie Ridge. New species, Regadrella
australis sp. nov., is described from the Australian EEZ surrounding Macquarie Island, and other locations in the New
Zealand EEZ. Records from International waters surrounding New Zealand include Euplectella imperialis from Lord
Howe Plateau and R. okinoseana from Wanganella Bank and Louisville Seamount Chain.