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Phorbas tenacior, Blue sponge is one of the first organisms to colonize new wrecks or any submerged vertical surface not yet colonized by marine organisms. In this video we see it on a wreck about 30 meters deep. Probably this wreck is quite recent, perhaps sunk between the first and second world wars, has several colonies of sponges including the blue encrusting sponge, which seems to prefer vertical walls away from direct sunlight. Obviously we also see it next to other species of sponges of the genus Tedania and Verongia but if we look at the part of the prow the presence of Phorbas tenacior seems to be more massive than other sponges and algae.
Phorbas tenacior Blue Sponge Spugna incrostante blu www.intotheblue.it
Porifera (Porifera Grant, 1836, from the Latin pore bearers) or sponges are an animal phylum. These are multicellular organisms, having bodies full of pores and channels that allow water to circulate through them; they are basically made up of a sac, or spongocele, structured as a gelatinous compound or mesoglea placed between two thin layers of cells, the choanoderm, internal, and the pinacoderm, external.
Phorbas tenacior Blue Sponge Spugna incrostante blu www.intotheblue.it – altre specie di spugne del genere Tedania e Verongia
Undifferentiated cells in the mesoglia, or archaeoblasts, capable of transforming themselves to take on specialized functions, can migrate between the principal cell layers and the mesoglia. They have a skeletal structure, the endoskeleton, formed by calcareous or siliceous spicules, or made up of spongin protein fibers, produced by specialized cells. Sponges do not have differentiated systems or organs; most functions rely on maintaining a constant flow of water through their bodies to obtain food and oxygen and remove catabolic products.
Phorbas tenacior Blue Sponge Spugna incrostante blu www.intotheblue.it
Phorbas tenacior is a sponge of the Hymedesmiidae (Demospongiae) family, widespread in the Mediterranean Sea. Phorbas tenacior Spugna Blu Blue Sponge intotheblue.it
Description
It is an encrusting sponge with a leucon-like morphology. It gives life to colonies with the appearance of translucent plates of fleshy consistency, from light blue to blue-gray in color, 1-3 mm thick and up to 15-20 cm2 wide. The inhalant orifices are grouped and the osculae are in an elevated position. The transparent channels are visible.
Distribution and habitat
It is common in the Mediterranean Sea. Sciafila species that prefer poorly lit environments (caves, north-facing walls).
https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phorbas_tenacior
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