People’s Choice: Sponge Reproduction

Photography by Camille Berardone, undergraduate student,
Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College

Sponges are crucial for maintaining life in aquatic ecosystems. They act as natural filters of the water, as well as food and habitat sources. To conserve these sponges in their natural environments, it is vital to have a total understanding of their life cycle. Unfortunately, there is not much research done on sponge reproduction and survival of larvae once spawned. This image is in line with my research to further investigate sponge reproduction. To determine the species being worked with, cuttings were taken from samples collected in the Florida Keys. These cuttings were air-dried and examined under a stereo microscope to produce images such as this one. This image is of Spongia cheiris, or a glove sponge, and shows its species-specific complex internal network that aids in its identification. This research is a part of a larger land-based nursery project, based at the FAU Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute's Laboratory of Integrative Marine and Coastal Ecology.