Callyspongia+plicifera

= Azure Vase Sponge (//Callyspongia plicifera//) = **Taxonomy: ** Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Porifera Class: Demospongiae Order: Haplosclerida Family: Callyspongiidae Genus: //Callyspongia// Species: //Callyspongia plicifera//

The azure vase sponge is one of the most colorful sponges in the world.  Its color ranges from pink to purple to a fluorescent light blue.
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The azure vase sponge is shaped like a vase with many grooves and pits on the outer surface.  The inner walls of the sponge, however, are very smooth.  The vase can grow up to 27 centimeters in height and 13.5 centimeters in diameter. They grow either individually or in groups of two or three.
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<span style="color: #808080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">They are found in coral reefs at depths of around twenty to seventy-five feet. <span style="color: #808080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> Specifically, they can be found in coral reefs in the Caribbean, the Bahamas, and Florida.
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<span style="color: #808080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">These sponges take in water at the bottom and then eject it from the "osculum" which is the "little mouth" at the top of the sponge. <span style="color: #808080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">They can actually control water flow by closing (wholly or partially) the osculum. <span style="color: #808080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">They mostly reproduce sexually because they have both male and female organs. <span style="color: #808080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">When they release sperm cells into the water, it fertilizes the ova. <span style="color: #808080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">The fertilized eggs form larvae which in turn swim off in search of somewhere to settle. <span style="color: #808080; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">This sponge does very well in captivity which allows people to use them as a very colorful decoration in salt water tanks.
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Sources: [] []