Cymbastela coralliophila

Hooper & Bergquist, 1992

Plate Sponge

Range: Western Pacific Ocean: Great Barrier Reef.

Natural Environment: Inhabit hard substrates found on reef slopes, sandy lagoons, and in deep muddy areas.

Aquarium Suitability: Not collected for the home aquarium trade.

Best left in the wild.

Note: For a photo of this sponge, visit the Baensch Marine Atlas Vol. 2, page 51.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Porifera

Class: Demospongiae

Subclass: Heteroscleromorpha

Order: Axinellida

Family: Axinellidae

Genus: Cymbastela

FYI: Feeds by drawing water in and through its pores and filtering out bacteria and organic particles, then expelling the filtered water out through the osculi.