By: Danielle Marvin


Feed by filtration

Have unique cell type not found in other animal phyla
(the Collar Cell)
 Tissues are loosely organized

Possess no internal organs

Have an internal meshwork of tiny fibers that acts like a skeleton


Has two outer layers

Layers separated by a single-cell gel layer called the mesohyl
 Supportive needles/fibers in gel layer

No internal organs

None possess a backbone


No formal digestion system

Draw water in through pores
 Brings it into central cavity lined with flagellum that keeps a current flowing

Food is captured by a ring of tentacles

Food is digested or moved into middle layer of body to be digested.

 Have no formal respiration system.
 Draw water in through pores

Use water to hydrate cells

Makes use of any food particles in the water
 Releases water back out through pores

 Have no formal internal transport system.

Everything is moved through the pores with tiny fibers.
 In Asconoid sponges, movement canals go straight through the body
(hollow bodied)
 In Synconoid sponges, canals are branched instead of straight
 In Leuconoid sponges, canals are longer and more complicated, leading off to little chambers and eventually, an exit.


Have no formal excretion system

Pass waste out through pores

Diffusion

Osmosis

Cell Transport

 Have no nervous system
 Have no sensory organs

Have no immune system

Release poisons to protect selves

These poisons cause threatening sponge to stop reproducing cells
 In all, they don’t respond much.


Swim in liquid as a baby sponge cell in the parent sponge
 Move through parent’s pores into the water body

Float through the water until they settle on a surface (rock, other sponge, etc.)

Attach self to surface

Do not move again


Reproduce asexually

Most sponges have both female and male parts

Cell-like embryo is formed

Becomes a free-swimming creature inside of it’s parent sponge
 Is pushed out of parent’s pores to become it’s own sponge.


Chalina (Mermaid’s Gloves)

Hippospongia (Horse Sponge)
 Euplectella (Japanese Bridal Gift)
 Hyalonema (Glass Rope Sponge)
 Scypha (Crown Sponge)


Over 5,000 species

2% are freshwater
 Smallest sponge can be only a millimeter tall at full growth height

Largest can be the size of a large wood barrel

One cubic centimeter of a sponge can filter over 20 liters of water in one day

 http://www.earthlife.net/inverts/porifera.html
 http://www.ebiomedia.com/prod/BOsponges.html
 http://cfcc.edu/rogers/courses/msc174/Lectures/Phylum%20Porifera.pdf
 http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/invertebrates/sponge/
 http://animals.about.com/od/sponge1/p/porifera.htm
 http://www.infusion.allconet.org/webquest/PhylumPorifera.html
 http://kboyer.weebly.com/uploads/2/8/6/2/2862577/adv_bio_unit_2-
_porifera_fact_sheet.pdf
 http://www.ceab.csic.es/~maldonado/2008-Maldonado%26Riesgo-
SocCatBiol.pdf
 http://thephylumporiferaproject.wikispaces.com/