Three new species of Geodia Lamarck, 1815 (Porifera, Demospongiae) from the bathyal depths off Brazilian coast, Southwestern Atlantic

This work comprises a taxonomic study of tetractinellid sponges from a poor ly known region in the southwestern Atlantic, off the Rio Grande do Sul Sta te coast, Brazil (31 degrees 05'-32 degrees 00'S/49 degrees 31'-50 degrees 00'W). Samples were collected by R/V "Atlantico Sul" of Fundacao Universida de do Rio Grande in a continental slope survey ("Projeto Talude") and R/V " Prof. W. Besnard", of Institute Oceanografico da Universidade de Sao Paulo/ Group for the Development of the Fisheries Industry, in Rio Grande do Sul I Cruise. Three new species are described: Geodia australis, G. splendida an d G. riograndensis.