''Aplysina aerophoba'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriat ...

sponge Sponges, the members of the phylum Porifera (; meaning 'pore bearer'), 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 throu ...

in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Aplysinidae. It is a yellow, tube-forming or encrusting sponge and is native to the eastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea; the type locality is the

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to th ...

Description

''Aplysina aerophoba'' forms colonies up to across of irregular, yellow, tubular processes. Individual tubes are up to long and wide, with small oscula or exhalant pores in the centre of the flattened end. The surface of both basal mass and tubes bears small, cylindrical projections of variable length. The surface is slippery to the touch and the texture is firm and rubbery. When removed from water, this sponge turns blue, leading to its specific name "aerophoba" (Greek: "fear of air"). ''Aplysina aerophoba'' could be confused with another yellow sponge, '' Aplysina cavernicola'', but the two have different textures, morphology and pigmentation, and occupy different habitats, with ''A. aerophoba'' being found in sunlit spots and ''A. cavernicola'' in marine caves. Another, dis-similar, dwarf yellow sponge has been found in the Mediterranean in the early 21st century; genetic analysis has confirmed that it is a miniature form of ''A. aerophoba''. The dwarf form is a bright sulphur yellow colour and forms small lobular patches on the surface of rocks. These do not usually touch each other, but there may be some non-apparent connection between them. Each lobe is somewhere between in diameter and often has small, slender cylindrical projections a few millimetres long. The surface is pitted with small puncture marks which correspond to the inhalant pores. The oscula are very small, usually less than 1 mm in diameter.

Distribution and habitat

''Aplysina aerophoba'' is chiefly a Mediterranean species, but is also found in adjacent parts of the Atlantic Ocean in Portugal and northwestern Spain. It is common in the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, :es:Canarias, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to ...

. Its depth range is from the lower

intertidal zone The intertidal zone, also known as the foreshore, is the area above water level at low tide and underwater at high tide (in other words, the area within the tidal range). This area can include several types of habitats with various species ...

to about , usually being found in sunlit locations. The dwarf form is known from a few locations in the Mediterranean Sea including

Liguria Liguria (; lij, Ligûria ; french: Ligurie) is a Regions of Italy, region of north-western Italy; its Capital city, capital is Genoa. Its territory is crossed by the Alps and the Apennine Mountains, Apennines Mountain chain, mountain range and is ...

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and

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, and lives in caves and under overhangs in very shallow water.

Ecology

This sponge feeds by drawing water in through small pores known as ostia at the base of the sponge and ejecting the water from the oscula, having filtered out organic particles such as bacteria, unicellular algae and tiny particles of detritus. It is a

hermaphrodite In reproductive biology, a hermaphrodite () is an organism that has both kinds of reproductive organs and can produce both gametes associated with male and female sexes. Many taxonomic groups of animals (mostly invertebrates) do not have ...

; the

gamete A gamete (; , ultimately ) is a haploid cell that fuses with another haploid cell during fertilization in organisms that reproduce sexually. Gametes are an organism's reproductive cells, also referred to as sex cells. In species that produce ...

s are released into the sea where fertilisation occurs, the larvae are

plankton Plankton are the diverse collection of organisms found in water (or air) that are unable to propel themselves against a current (or wind). The individual organisms constituting plankton are called plankters. In the ocean, they provide a cruc ...

ic and soon settle in a suitable location and undergo

metamorphosis Metamorphosis is a biological process by which an animal physically develops including birth or hatching, involving a conspicuous and relatively abrupt change in the animal's body structure through cell growth and differentiation. Some inse ...

into juvenile sponges. Under certain conditions, the sponge can produce buds which separate off from the parent and form new colonies.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q139182 Verongimorpha Fauna of the Atlantic Ocean Fauna of the Mediterranean Sea Animals described in 1833 Taxa named by Giovanni Domenico Nardo