Sponge Guide

UNCW National Science Foundation Valdosta State University Universidad Nacional de Colombia

Observed Characteristics:

Color:

  • yellow

Morphology:

  • papillated

Consistency:

  • tough

Sample Locations:

  • Bahamas

Unidentified -“yellow fistules”

Notes: Material was lost. Fresh section showed algal tissue. Could be Suberea flavolivescens (Hofman & Kielman, 1992), an excavating and cavity-filling sponge which turns purple when exposed to air and that lacks propper spicules. S. flavolivescens was originally described under genus Axinyssa, but then was transferred to the genus Suberea by Valderrama & Zea (2013) and Rützler et al. (2014) on the basis of having found scattered verongid-like fibers. A detailed study is currently under way.