Sponge Orchestration
by Jean Noren
Title
Sponge Orchestration
Artist
Jean Noren
Medium
Photograph - Photograph
Description
This sponge looks like its extending arms out to orchestrate something.
The yellow tube sponge is very accurately named. It consists of tubes that are open at the top and closed at the base and provide habitat for many other species of invertebrates (crabs and shrimps) and reef fishes . Sponges, are attached to the reef surface and are unable to move. If pieces of an individual are broken off by predators or during a storm, they can reattach and begin growing a new sponge.
Sponges have existed for at least 500 million years. However, because this species lives mostly on coral reefs, changes to that fragile system caused by irresponsible human behavior may threaten the yellow tube sponge.
Each of a sponge’s individual cells can transform to complete the job of any other cell in the body. This lack of specialization means that if a sponge is ground up in a blender it can reform itself as the cells swim back together and take on the form and job needed for recovery.
Yellow tube sponges feed by filtering water through the body wall, trapping food particles and excreting waste materials into the inner bowl or tube. The, now filtered, wastewater exits the sponge through the large opening at the top ( osculum). They also obtain oxygen from the water during this process.
The primary predator of the yellow tube sponge is the hawksbill turtle, and its not unusual to see turtle sized bit marks on the top and sides of a sponge.
The yellow tube sponge does not have silica skeleton, so has been collected for use as a bath sponge in the past. Fortunately, synthetic sponges have eliminated the market for these sponges, and it is only rarely collected today.
Uploaded
May 25th, 2019
Statistics
Viewed 793 Times - Last Visitor from New York, NY on 04/20/2024 at 4:46 AM
Embed
Share
Sales Sheet
Comments
There are no comments for Sponge Orchestration. Click here to post the first comment.