Cliona patera

Neptune's cup
Neptune's Cup
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Porifera
Class: Demospongiae
Subclass: Tetractinomorpha
Order: Hadromerida
Family: Clionaidae
Genus: Poterion
Species: P. patera
Binomial name
Poterion patera
Hardwicke, 1822[1]
Synonyms
  • Spongia patera
    Hardwicke, 1822[1][2]

Cliona patera, commonly called Neptune's cup sponge, is a species of demosponge in the family Clionaidae.[1]

Among the larger known sponges at up to a meter in height and width, the common name Neptune's cup refers to its characteristic wine glass shape and the Roman god of the sea. The species was thought to be extinct since the early 1900s due to overharvesting, but live specimens were discovered in 2011 off the coast of Singapore[3] and Thailand. Later they were transported so they can be close enough to reproduce. In the early 1900s, they were used as baby baths because they grew so large. They can grow up to 5m, and grow a couple centimeters every month.

References

  1. 1 2 3 van Soest, R. (2014). Van Soest RW, Boury-Esnault N, Hooper JN, Rützler K, de Voogd NJ, de Glasby BA, Hajdu E, Pisera AB, Manconi R, Schoenberg C, Janussen D, Tabachnick KR, Klautau M, Picton B, Kelly M, Vacelet J, eds. "Cliona patera (Hardwicke, 1820)". World Porifera database. World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 2014-05-22.
  2. ↑ Lim Swee-Cheng, author of A Guide to Sponges of Singapore. "Flickr - Hardwicke, 1822. Pg 1". Retrieved 2011-11-17.
  3. ↑ Platt, John R. (17 November 2011). "Amazing Neptune's Cup Sponge Rediscovered in Singapore". Extinction Countdown blog. Scientific American. Retrieved 2011-11-17.


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.