Variable Boring Sponge
Aka coralliphaga
20.8481, -86.8759
Field Notes
Description:
A boring sponge which grows in a wide variety of patterns: they appear as an encrusting sponge; as vase-like tubes extending from coral heads; as finger-like branches extending from the coral; or as tiny tubes extending from dead coral areas. Sulfur- to lemon-yellow, occasionally white.
Habitat:
Inhabit coral reefs and drop-off walls. Bore into corals by secreting minute amounts of acid. This sponge bores large, fist-sized holes in coral heads. From Florida all the Caribbean sea to north Brazil.
Species ID Suggestions
Spotted for Missions
Photographed
PublishedDecember 9, 2012
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