E-Fauna Photo Gallery

Asbestopluma occidentalis  (Sponge)

Photo of Asbestopluma occidentalis by <a href="http://www.seastarsofthepacificnorthwest.info/">Neil McDaniel</a>
© Neil McDaniel (Photo ID #16040)

Photographer's Submitted Details

Photo Location Jervis Inlet Photographer Neil McDaniel
Habitat subtidal, bedrock
Photo Date Upload Date January 23, 2012
Elevation (m) -20
UTM Zone # Latitude 49.7380555555556
UTM Easting Longitude -124.036666666667
UTM Northing Photo ID # 16040
Notes Asbestopluma (Asbestopluma) occidentalis. Pipecleaner sponge. Identified by Bill Austin. This remarkable sponge is a carnivore, trapping tiny crustaceans in the lateral spines which have numerous hook-like spicules on the surface. This species holds the distinction of having the greatest known bathymetric range of any sponge, from -15 m in Howe Sound, British Columbia, to -8,840 m in the central Pacific Ocean. Family Cladorhizidae.


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