Sponges or sea sponges are primarily marine invertebrates of the animal phylum Porifera[4]

(/pəˈrɪfərəˌ pɔː-/; meaning 'pore bearer'),[5] a basal clade and a sister taxon of the

diploblasts.[6] They are sessile filter feeders that are bound to the seabed, and are one of the

most ancient members of macrobenthos, with many historical species being important

reef-building organisms.

Sponges are multicellular organisms consisting of jelly-like mesohyl sandwiched between two

thin layers of cells, and usually have tube-like bodies full of pores and channels that allow water

to circulate through them. They have unspecialized cells that can transform into other types and

that often migrate between the main cell layers and the mesohyl in the process. They do not

have complex nervous,[7] digestive or circulatory systems. Instead, most rely on maintaining a

constant water flow through their bodies to obtain food and oxygen and to remove wastes,

usually via flagella movements of the so-called "collar cells".

Sponges are believed to have been the first outgroup to branch off the evolutionary tree from

the last common ancestor of all animals,[6] with fossil evidence of primitive sponges such as

Otavia from as early as the Tonian period (around 800 Mya). The branch of zoology that studies

sponges is spongiology.[8]

Etymology

The term sponge derives from the Ancient Greek word σπόγγος spóngos.[9] The scientific

name Porifera is a neuter plural of the Modern Latin term porifer, which comes from the roots

porus meaning "pore, opening", and -fer meaning "bearing or carrying".

Overview
 Sponge biodiversity and morphotypes at the lip of a wall site in 60 feet (20 m) of water. Included are

the yellow tube sponge, Aplysina fistularis, the purple vase sponge, Niphates digitalis, the red

encrusting sponge, Spirastrella coccinea, and the gray rope sponge, Callyspongia sp.

Sponges are similar to other animals in that they are multicellular, heterotrophic, lack cell walls

and produce sperm cells. Unlike other animals, they lack true tissues[10] and organs.[11]

Some of them are radially symmetrical, but most are asymmetrical. The shapes of their bodies

are adapted for maximal efficiency of water flow through the central cavity, where the water

deposits nutrients and then leaves through a hole called the osculum. The single-celled

choanoflagellates resemble the choanocyte cells of sponges which are used to drive their water

flow systems and capture most of their food. This along with phylogenetic studies of ribosomal

molecules have been used as morphological evidence to suggest sponges are the sister group

to the rest of animals.[12] A great majority are marine (salt-water) species, ranging in habitat

from tidal zones to depths exceeding 8,800 m (5.5 mi), though there are freshwater species. All

adult sponges are sessile, meaning that they attach to an underwater surface and remain fixed

in place (i.e., do not travel). While in their larval stage of life, they are motile.

Many sponges have internal skeletons of spicules (skeletal-like fragments of calcium carbonate

or silicon dioxide), and/or spongin (a modified type of collagen protein).[10] An internal

gelatinous matrix called mesohyl functions as an endoskeleton, and it is the only skeleton in

soft sponges that encrust such hard surfaces as rocks. More commonly, the mesohyl is
stiffened by mineral spicules, by spongin fibers, or both. Most sponges (over 90% of all known

species) are demosponges, which have the widest range of habitats (including all freshwater

ones); they use spongin, silica spicules, or both, and some species have calcium carbonate

exoskeletons. Calcareans have calcium carbonate spicules and, in some species, calcium

carbonate exoskeletons; they are restricted to relatively shallow marine waters where

production of calcium carbonate is easiest.[13]: 179 The fragile hexactinellids or glass

sponges use "scaffolding" of silica spicules and are restricted to polar regions or ocean depths

where predators are rare. Fossils of all of these types have been found in rocks dated from 580

million years ago. In addition Archaeocyathids, whose fossils are common in rocks from 530 to

490 million years ago, are now regarded as a type of sponge. The smallest class of extant

sponges are homoscleromorphs, which either have calcium carbonate spicules like the

calcereans or are aspiculate, and found in shaded marine environments like caves and

overhangs.

Although most of the approximately 5,000–10,000 known species of sponges feed on bacteria

and other microscopic food in the water, some host photosynthesizing microorganisms as

endosymbionts, and these alliances often produce more food and oxygen than they consume. A

few species of sponges that live in food-poor environments have evolved as carnivores that

prey mainly on small crustaceans.[14]

Most sponges reproduce sexually, but they can also reproduce asexually. Sexually reproducing

species release sperm cells into the water to fertilize ova released or retained by its mate or

"mother"; the fertilized eggs develop into larvae which swim off in search of places to

settle.[13]: 183–185 Sponges are known for regenerating from fragments that are broken off,

although this only works if the fragments include the right types of cells. Some species

reproduce by budding. When environmental conditions become less hospitable to the sponges,

for example as temperatures drop, many freshwater species and a few marine ones produce

gemmules, "survival pods" of unspecialized cells that remain dormant until conditions improve;
they then either form completely new sponges or recolonize the skeletons of their

parents.[13]: 120–127

Cells of the protist choanoflagellate clade closely resemble sponge choanocyte cells. Beating of

choanocyte flagella draws water through the sponge so that nutrients can be extracted and waste

removed.[15]

The few species of demosponge that have entirely soft fibrous skeletons with no hard elements

have been used by humans over thousands of years for several purposes, including as padding

and as cleaning tools. By the 1950s, though, these had been overfished so heavily that the

industry almost collapsed, and most sponge-like materials are now synthetic. Sponges and their

microscopic endosymbionts are now being researched as possible sources of medicines for

treating a wide range of diseases. Dolphins have been observed using sponges as tools while

foraging.[16]