Sponges, in biological and ecological research topics, are basal metazoans (phylum Porifera) characterized by a porous body plan, an aquiferous canal system, and choanocyte-lined chambers that drive water flow for filter feeding, gas exchange, and waste removal. They possess a skeleton of spicules (siliceous or calcareous) and/or spongin fibers and exhibit high cellular plasticity with loosely organized tissues lacking true organs. Sponges play key roles in benthic ecosystems as major filter feeders, mediating biogeochemical cycles (e.g., carbon, nitrogen, silicon) and hosting diverse microbial symbionts that contribute to nutrient transformations, chemical defense, and the production of bioactive secondary metabolites.
Some of the most ancient fossils collected to date were traced back to the Ediacaran period. This is the time interval ranging from around 635 to 541 million years ago, shortly before the time when scientists predict that ...
The Indo-Pacific is the largest marine biogeographical region on Earth and a global center of marine biodiversity. Nevertheless, there are gaps remaining in our understanding of the diversity, distribution, and endemism of ...
Ecology
Mar 17, 2026
0
8
New research shows the effects of marine heat waves on sponges could be much more severe as temperatures rise. More intense marine heat waves as a result of climate change could lead to the mass loss of a sponge species found ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 11, 2026
0
17
Sponges are among Earth's most ancient animals, but exactly when they evolved has long puzzled scientists. Genetic information from living sponges, as well as chemical signals from ancient rocks, suggest that sponges evolved ...
Evolution
Jan 7, 2026
0
75
A completely new order of marine sponges has been found by researchers at the Museum of Evolution, Uppsala University. The sponge order, named Vilesida, produces substances that could be used in drug development. The same ...
Evolution
Dec 2, 2025
0
44
While they didn't live in a pineapple under the Phosphoria Sea, it turns out a good chunk of the prehistoric Intermountain West was once blanketed in sea sponges.
Ecology
Nov 13, 2025
0
70
In the world of phylogenetics, there's team sponge and team comb jelly. Which creature roots the animal tree of life—the simple sponge or the more complex comb jelly—has stirred fierce debate among phylogeneticists, researchers ...
Evolution
Nov 13, 2025
0
51
The MARBLES team is excited to share a new breakthrough from the project! The study led by the University of Aberdeen and published in the journal Marine Drugs, has identified promising bioactive compounds produced by a Streptomyces ...
Cell & Microbiology
Nov 5, 2025
0
24
New research investigating whether nitrogen fertilizer run-off affects marine sponges suggests these animals have a high tolerance to nitrogen, but some species may be better able to cope than others.
Plants & Animals
Oct 13, 2025
0
17
A team of MIT geochemists has unearthed new evidence in very old rocks suggesting that some of the first animals on Earth were likely ancestors of the modern sea sponge.
Plants & Animals
Sep 29, 2025
0
168
