Sponges, the members of the phylum Porifera, are a basal animal clade as a sister of the Diploblasts. They are multicellular organisms that have bodies full of pores and channels allowing water to circulate through them, consisting of jelly-like mesohyl sandwiched between two thin layers of cells.
Hermit crabs are anomuran decapod crustaceans of the superfamily Paguroidea that have adapted to occupy empty scavenged mollusc shells to protect their fragile exoskeletons. There are over 800 species of hermit crab, most of which possess an asymmetric abdomen concealed by a snug-fitting shell. Hermit crabs' non-calcified abdominal exoskeleton makes their exogenous shelter system obligatory. Hermit crabs must occupy shelter produced by other organisms, or risk being defenseless.
The Planctomycetota are a phylum of widely distributed bacteria, occurring in both aquatic and terrestrial habitats. They play a considerable role in global carbon and nitrogen cycles, with many species of this phylum capable of anaerobic ammonium oxidation, also known as anammox. Many Planctomycetota occur in relatively high abundance as biofilms, often associating with other organisms such as macroalgae and marine sponges.
Demosponges (Demospongiae) are the most diverse class in the phylum Porifera. They include 76.2% of all species of sponges with nearly 8,800 species worldwide. They are sponges with a soft body that covers a hard, often massive skeleton made of calcium carbonate, either aragonite or calcite. They are predominantly leuconoid in structure. Their "skeletons" are made of spicules consisting of fibers of the protein spongin, the mineral silica, or both. Where spicules of silica are present, they have a different shape from those in the otherwise similar glass sponges. Some species, in particular from the Antarctic, obtain the silica for spicule building from the ingestion of siliceous diatoms.
A spongivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating animals of the phylum Porifera, commonly called sea sponges, for the main component of its diet. As a result of their diet, spongivore animals like the hawksbill turtle have developed sharp, narrow bird-like beak that allows them to reach within crevices on the reef to obtain sponges.
Anheteromeyenia argyrosperma is a freshwater sponge found across North America.
Clathrina coriacea is a species of calcareous sponge belonging to the class Calcarea and family Clathrinidae. Species in the genus Clathrina are composed of calcium carbonate tube-like skeletons containing spicules. The sponge can be located in shallow waters widely distributed along North Atlantic coasts, as well as on other coasts.
Spicules are structural elements found in most sponges. Sponge spicules are made of calcium carbonate or silica. Large spicules visible to the naked eye are referred to as megascleres, while smaller, microscopic ones are termed microscleres. The meshing of many spicules serves as the sponge's skeleton and thus it provides structural support and potentially defense against predators. The composition, size, and shape of spicules are major characters in sponge systematics and taxonomy.
Suberites is a genus of sea sponges in the family Suberitidae. Sponges, known scientifically as Porifera, are the oldest metazoans and are used to elucidate the basics of multicellular evolution. These living fossils are ideal for studying the principal features of metazoans, such as extracellular matrix interactions, signal-receptor systems, nervous or sensory systems, and primitive immune systems. Thus, sponges are useful tools with which to study early animal evolution. They appeared approximately 580 million years ago.
Monorhaphis is a monotypic genus of siliceous deep sea Hexactinellid sponges. The single species is the type species Monorhaphis chuni, a sponge known for creating a single giant basal spicule (G.B.S.) to anchor the sponge in the sediments. The species was described by Franz Eilhard Schulze in 1904 from specimens collected by the German Deep Sea Expedition in 1898-1899. Monorhaphis is also the only genus in the monotypic family Monorhaphididae.
Pseudospongosorites is a genus of sea sponges belonging to the family Suberitidae. Currently, the genus is considered as monotypic, consisting of a single species Pseudospongosorites suberitoides. It is found in the Caribbean Sea, the Gulf of Mexico and on the Atlantic coast of the United States as far north as North Carolina. This species is known by the common name Florida hermit crab sponge, so named because hermit crabs often use it as shelter.
Spongilla lacustris is a species of freshwater sponge from the family Spongillidae. It inhabits freshwater rivers and lakes, often growing under logs or rocks. Lacustris is a Latin word meaning "related to or associated with lakes". The species ranges from North America to Europe and Asia. It is the most common freshwater sponge in central Europe. It is the most widespread sponge in Northern Britain, and is one of the most common species of sponges in lakes and canals. Spongilla lacustris have the ability to reproduce both sexually and asexually. They become dormant during winter. The growth form ranges from encrusting, to digitate, to branched, depending upon the quality of the habitat.
Suberites ficus is a species of sponge in the family Suberitidae. It is sometimes known as the sea orange sponge.
Paguristes eremita, the eye spot hermit crab, is a species of hermit crab in the family Diogenidae. It is found in the Mediterranean Sea.
Geodia megastrella is a species of sponge in the family Geodiidae. It is a type of demosponge found in the deep temperate waters of the North Atlantic Ocean. It has characteristic stellar-shaped large spicules coined 'megastrellum', hence its name. The species was first described by Henry John Carter in 1876, after dredging it up aboard H.M.S. 'Porcupine', near the Cape St. Vincent in Portugal.
Pagurus dalli, commonly known as the whiteknee hermit, is a species of hermit crab in the family Paguridae. It is found in the northeastern Pacific Ocean at depths down to about 276 m (900 ft). It usually lives in a mutualistic symbiosis with a sponge, or sometimes a hydroid.
Silicateins are enzymes which catalyse the formation of biosilica from monomeric silicon compounds extracted from the natural environment. Environmental silicates are absorbed by specific biota, including diatoms, radiolaria, silicoflagellates, and siliceous sponges; silicateins have so far only been found in sponges. Silicateins are homologous to the cysteine protease cathepsin.
Dysidea etheria, commonly known as the ethereal sponge or heavenly sponge, is a species of lobate sponge within the class Demospongiae. This marine sponge is known for its light blue color and can be found in the Caribbean as well as off the coasts of Florida and Georgia. Like all other poriferans, D. etheria is capable of both sexual and asexual reproduction. The use of spicule collection as well as chemical defenses allows D. etheria to protect itself against predators such as the zebra doris and the orange knobby star. D. etheria is also known as a host species of the invasive brittle star Ophiothela mirabilis. Lastly, various molecular biology studies have utilized D. etheria to both study foreign particle transport in sponges and to isolate novel molecules.
Pseudoceratina is a genus of sponge within the family Pseudoceratinidae. They are characterized by possession of a dendritic fiber skeleton lacking laminar bark but containing pith. They have been found in a variety of habitats including the Great Barrier reef, the Red Sea, and Jamaica. Sponges of this genus have a microbiome known to produce a variety of chemicals that are used in pharmaceutical and anti-fouling activities. Notably, a species in this genus produces a chemical that is effective in inhibiting the migration of metastatic breast cancer cells.
