Orange wall sponge

Orange wall sponge
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Porifera
Class:	Demospongiae
Order:	Trachycladida
Family:	Trachycladidae
Genus:	Trachycladus
Species:	T. spinispirulifer
Binomial name
	Trachycladus spinispirulifer; (Carter, 1879)
Synonyms
	Spirastrella dilatataKieschnick, 1896; Spirastrella spinispirulifera(Carter, 1879); Suberites spinispiruliferCarter, 1879; Trachycladus spinispirulifera [lapsus];

Last updated August 21, 2025

The orange wall sponge (Trachycladus spinispirulifer) is a species of sea sponge belonging to the order Trachycladida.^[1] It is found in the south Atlantic and Indo-Pacific oceans. Around the South African coast, it is known from the Cape Peninsula to Cape Agulhas.^[2]

Description

The orange wall sponge may grow to 20 cm (7.9 in) thick and up to 2 m (6.6 ft) in length. It is a very large firm orange-skinned sponge with a yellow interior. It grows as a wall and does not show obvious oscula.^[1] The largely smooth surface is somewhat ridged and contains unevenly distributed rough patches.^[3] It has a corky consistency.^[3]

Spicules

The following spicules make up the skeleton of this species:^[4]

Long, thin and slightly curved tylostyles (megascleres with a point at one end and a knob at the other).
Characteristic spinispires. These are mostly c-shaped with the ends curved in a different plane to the rest of the spicule. Spines occur on only the convex surface.

Skeleton

The sponge is made of scattered tylostyles with the heads on the substrate and the tips piecing the sponge surface. The ectosome is made of densely packed spinispires, with more scattered throughout the choanosome.^[4]

Distribution and habitat

This sponge is known from the south and west coasts of South Africa, Namibia, the South Atlantic, the Vema Seamount, Australia, New Zealand, Ternate, and Zanzibar.^[1] It lives on rocky reefs at depths of 5–350 m (16–1,148 ft).^[2] It is commonly found on vertical rock faces and in crevices.^[1]

References

1 2 3 4 Samaai, T. and Gibbons, M.J. 2005. Demospongiae taxonomy and biodiversity of the Benguela region on the west coast of South Africa. Afr. Nat. Hist. 1(1):1-96
1 2 Jones, Georgina. A field guide to the marine animals of the Cape Peninsula. SURG, Cape Town, 2008. ISBN 978-0-620-41639-9
1 2 Atkinson, Lara J; Sink, Kerry J (2018). Field guide to the offshore marine invertebrates of South Africa (PDF). Pretoria: South African Environmental Observation Network. ISBN 978-1-86868-098-6. OCLC 1037159161. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2021-09-26. Retrieved 2021-10-02.
1 2 Uriz, María Jesús (1988). Deep-water sponges from the continental shelf and slope of Namibia (south-west Africa). Classes Hexactinellida and Demospongiae. CSIC-Instituto de Ciencias del Mar (ICM)

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[Samaai-1] 1 2 3 4 Samaai, T. and Gibbons, M.J. 2005. Demospongiae taxonomy and biodiversity of the Benguela region on the west coast of South Africa. Afr. Nat. Hist. 1(1):1-96

[Jones_2008-2] 1 2 Jones, Georgina. A field guide to the marine animals of the Cape Peninsula. SURG, Cape Town, 2008. ISBN 978-0-620-41639-9

[:SAEON-3] 1 2 Atkinson, Lara J; Sink, Kerry J (2018). Field guide to the offshore marine invertebrates of South Africa (PDF). Pretoria: South African Environmental Observation Network. ISBN 978-1-86868-098-6. OCLC 1037159161. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2021-09-26. Retrieved 2021-10-02.

[:Uriz-4] 1 2 Uriz, María Jesús (1988). Deep-water sponges from the continental shelf and slope of Namibia (south-west Africa). Classes Hexactinellida and Demospongiae. CSIC-Instituto de Ciencias del Mar (ICM)

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