Saltcorner
By Bob Goemans
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Family Clionidae

Cliona caribbaea

Carter, 1882

Encrusting Yellow Sponge

Not Reef Tank Suitable

Not Suitable for Fish-Only Tank

Range: Western Atlantic Ocean: Caribbean, Belize, Jamaica, and Colombia to Panama.

Natural Environment: Inhabits reef and lagoon areas

Aquarium Suitability: Usually arrives attached to live rock and possible the lower exposed areas of stony corals, where it can eat its way into the skeleton material. Removed when seen.

Furthermore, keep in mind, if a hitchhiker sponge arrives attached to a coral specimen or live rock, it is reasonable to assume that at one time it was subjected to 'air' when the specimen or rock was harvested/shipped/transferred to various storage areas, thereby endangering the ongoing lifespan of the hitchhiker sponge, as it should never to subjected to air! Therefore the ongoing culture of hitchhiker sponges is dismal at best!

Best left in the wild.

Taxonomy:

    Kingdom: Animalia

    Phylum: Porifera

    Class: Demospongiae

    Subclass: Heteroscleromorpha

    Order: Clionaida

    Family: Clionidae

    Genus: Cliona

FYI: Shown here for identification only.

 Cliona caribbaea (Encrusting Yellow Sponge)
Photo © Vincent Hargreaves
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Tunze