Redbeard Sponge

Microciona prolifera

The redbeard sponge has thick, intertwining branches that vary in color from bright red to orange.

• The surface is covered with small, scattered pores called oscula and ostia.
• Can grow to about 8 inches tall and a foot wide.

Where does the redbeard sponge live?

Redbeard sponges grow in thick clumps on piers and pilings in shallow, protected intertidal and subtidal waters in the middle and lower Bay. They can also range into deeper waters, where they grow on wrecks, oyster reefs and other hard surfaces.

What does the redbeard sponge eat?

Redbeard sponges feed by:

• Drawing water and food particles in through the ostia into chambers with beating, hair-like flagella.
• The current created by the beating flagella drives the water and waste products through a system of canals and out the sponge's oscula.
• Redbeard sponges must have a constant supply of water to function, so they cannot grow past the lower intertidal zone.

How does the redbeard sponge reproduce?

Redbeard sponges can reproduce both sexually and asexually. Asexual reproduction takes place if its branches are damaged or broken off and the fragments regenerate or bud into complete sponges.

Sexual reproduction occurs when:

• One sponge releases clouds of sperm into the water.
• The sperm is carried to another sponge, and eggs are fertilized internally.
• The fertilized eggs are then released into the water, where they develop into larvae.
• Larvae fall to the bottom and search for a suitable surface to settle on. Once they attach themselves, they metamorphose into juvenile sponges.

Young redbeard sponges are usually flat, rather than thick and branching. However, they have the same bright coloring as adults.

Other facts about the redbeard sponge:

• The most common sponge in the Bay.
• The numerous nooks and crannies within sponges are habitat for shrimps, worms, crabs and other small Bay creatures.