Some representatives of phylum - Porifera

Leucosolenia

Class - Calcarea.

Simplest sponge found attached to the rocks on sea-shore, reaches a height of 1-2.5 cm

Branched colonial sponge having vase - shaped individuals.

Asconoid canal system, larva is parenchymula

Skeleton : Calcareous spicules.

Euplectella (Venus flower basket),

It symbolises that “till death we are together”.

Dried skeleton of this sponge is given as wedding gift in Japan.

Class - Hexactinellida found near Phillipines West Indies

Found in deep sea, attached to substratum with the help of root tuft. Osculum has sieve plates & surface has parietal gaps.

  Middle part of the root tuft usually bears epizoic or symbiotic anemones.

It encloses shrimp pair (spongicola genus) which lives here till death.

Fig. Leucosolenia:A colony growing on a rock

Euspongia (Bath sponge, Horny Sponge)

Class : Demospongiae;

Large brownish, spherical to lamelliform structure having leathery surface with numerous small projections or conules.

Commonly found in Mediterranean sea, Gulf of Mexico and Carribean.

Sexes separate. E. mollissma is mediterranean bath sponge. E. officinalis is Turkis bath sponge.

Commerical sponge is dried, cleaned, treated and bleached sponge skeleton used for packing, scrubbing, cleaning and sound proofing.

Chalina (Mermaid’s gloves, Dead man’s finger)

Class - Demospongiae, it resembles a hand with several fingers.

Skeleton of spongin fibres with siliceous spicules.

Common Names

Spheciospongia : Largest sponge

Leucosolenia : Smallest sponge

Scypha : Urn sponge (Crown sponge)

Olynthus : Hypothelical ancestor of sponges

Euplectella : Venus flower basket

Pheronema : Bowl sponge

Hyalonema : Glass - rope sponge

Cliona : Boring sponge (Sulphur sponge), Harmful to pearl industry.Produces sulphuric acid which bores through shell of pearl producing oysters.

Chalina : Mermaid’s gloves (Dead man’s finger)

Spongilla : Fresh water sponge. Green in colour due to presence of symbiotic algae zoochlarella.

Euspongia : Bath sponge

Poterion : Neptune’s goblet

Hippospongia : Horse sponge (Rough bath sponge.)

Hircinia : Horny sponge

Grantia : Purse sponge