Species protection of sponge animals

In all the oceans in the world, the number of sponges is huge; On the hard substrate, they are even more amazing; Relatively speaking, few sponges can adapt to the unstable living environment such as sand or mud. Their vertical living area extends from the lowest point of the water bank when the tidal effect occurs to the 8600-meter-deep ocean abyss; Freshwater sponges in silica sponges can even live in freshwater lakes and rivers all over the world. Sponges perched on tide markers are usually confined to a part of the coast, that is, the part of the coast that is exposed to the air for a short time. Some sponges also look a little higher than the coast, but only in sheltered places or on rocks with their backs to the sun. Some sponges will die once exposed to the air for a long time, so the species and individuals of sponges are the largest in the shallow waters of the continental shelf.

Spongy sponges are often the habitat of smaller animals. Some animals are harmless to sponges, while others are parasitic animals. Many sponges contain unicellular algae (green algae) that can carry out photosynthesis, blue-green algae and bacteria that can provide nutrition for sponges. Sea slugs (sea rabbits), stone turtles, starfish (especially in Antarctica), sea turtles and some tropical fish all feed on sponges. More than half of tropical sponge species are exposed to the air instead of hiding under rocks, which is usually toxic to fish. Scholars believe that this is an evolutionary response of sponges to predation of high-density fish, and nature has chosen harmful and toxic substances to prevent fish from preying on sponges. Some poisonous sponges are huge, such as giant Caribbean sponges; Other sponges are very dangerous to touch, such as Caribbean fire sponges-they often cause severe burning sensation for hours. Toxins can prevent animal larvae and plant spores from adhering to the sponge surface, so they may be beneficial to keep the sponge surface clean. Some sponge toxins can also prevent the surrounding invertebrates from growing too large, leading to suffocation of sponges.

Sponge toxin has been applied to the study of nerve stimulation transmission; They show great potential as biological dredging agents and can be used as shark repellent.

Bathing sponge itself has the function of absorbing water and maintaining the complex sponge hard protein fiber structure; These fibers are also elastic and can squeeze water out of the sponge. Many kinds of sponges can be collected by people (especially on the coasts of Florida and Greece), such as bathing horn sponge with fine skeleton network and horse sponge with rough skeleton. They grow at the bottom of rocks from low tide to deep sea and can be obtained by claw hooks or divers on board. The processing method of sponge is simply to dry it in the sun to rot its soft tissue, and only spongy hard protein bones are left after beating and cleaning. The method of cultivating sponges by excision is successful, although this method is not more feasible than artificial synthesis. Sponge contains various unique chemicals, toxins, even anti-inflammatory and anti-rheumatic compounds, such as anti-biomass, pigments and sterols. Shell-piercing sponges of the family Spiridae in Hai Ruo will weaken oyster shells and cause economic losses. These sponges can also dig holes by chemical and mechanical means.