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They are sessile filter feeders that are bound to the seabed, and are one of the most ancient members of macrobenthos, with many historical species being important reef-building organisms. Sponges are multicellular organisms consisting of jelly-like mesohyl sandwiched between two thin layers of cells, and usually have tube-like bodies full of ...
Using their ostia and osculum these sponges filter the water for various small aquatic organisms such as protozoans, bacteria, and other free-floating pond life. [4] Sponges of the genus Spongilla partake in symbiotic relationships with green algae, zoochlorellae. The symbiotic zoochlorellae give the sponges a green appearance and without them ...
In addition to this, a sponge disease caused by pathogenic bacteria and fungi has further reduced populations. [3] The bacteria and fungi destroy tissues and fibers of the sponges, making them weak. [3] Due to the regenerative abilities of these sponges, they are able to set aside infected tissue and recover. [3]
The Porifera phylum contains all sponges which are characterized by the small pores on the outer layer, which take in water. The cells in the sponge walls filter food from the water. Whatever is not uptaken by the sponge is pumped through the body out of a large opening. The class demosponges are
Spongia is a genus of marine sponges in the family Spongiidae, originally described by Carl Linnaeus in 1759, containing more than 60 species. [1] Some species, including Spongia officinalis , are used as cleaning tools, but have mostly been replaced in that use by synthetic or plant material.
All three sponge body plans (asconoid, syconoid, and leuconoid) can be found within the class Calcarea. Typically, calcareous sponges are small, measuring less than 10 cm (3.9 in) in height, and drab in colour. However, a few brightly coloured species are also known. Like the Homoscleromorpha, calcareous sponges are exclusively viviparous. [7]
Demosponges (Demospongiae) are the most diverse class in the phylum Porifera. They include greater than 90% of all species of sponges with nearly 8,800 species worldwide (World Porifera Database). [5] They are sponges with a soft body that covers a hard, often massive skeleton made of calcium carbonate, either aragonite or calcite [citation ...
Hippospongia communis also known as the honeycomb bath sponge, is a marine sponge in the phylum Porifera. Hippospongia communis is a brown or darker color [ 1 ] and very porous, due to its many oscules , and is commonly found in shallow waters of the Mediterranean .