https://padlet.com/smarkowitz19/8gjieynnsa6l Chondrocladia lyra en-us 2017-12-01 15:44:34 UTC 2026-01-29 17:56:01 UTC hello@padlet.com https://padlet-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/icons/Dootheets.png smarkowitz19 https://padlet.com/smarkowitz19/8gjieynnsa6l/wish/212476904 Also known as the Harp Sponge, Chondrocladia lyra is a unique carnivorous sponge which gains its name from its harp-like shape.]]> 2017-12-02 04:32:10 UTC https://padlet.com/smarkowitz19/8gjieynnsa6l/wish/212476904 smarkowitz19 https://padlet.com/smarkowitz19/8gjieynnsa6l/wish/212477153 The Lyre Sponge belongs to the Demospongiae class of animals, one of the most diverse and varied classes of sponges.]]> 2017-12-02 04:40:46 UTC https://padlet.com/smarkowitz19/8gjieynnsa6l/wish/212477153 smarkowitz19 https://padlet.com/smarkowitz19/8gjieynnsa6l/wish/212477155 The Lyre sponge is a recently discovered species of sponge (2013), and has so far been found off the Pacific coast of California, about 10,000 to 11,000 feet below the surface. At this depth, the sponge is in complete darkness and cannot live off filter-feeding. Therefore, the Lyre sponge is a carnivorous animal. 

They live in areas with a soft seafloor, as such an environment allows the sponge to anchor itself using its rhizoids. Rhizoids are structures similar to roots which protrude from the bottom of the lyre sponge and anchor it to the soft sediment. ]]> 2017-12-02 04:40:52 UTC https://padlet.com/smarkowitz19/8gjieynnsa6l/wish/212477155 smarkowitz19 https://padlet.com/smarkowitz19/8gjieynnsa6l/wish/212477167 As mentioned in the previous post, the Lyre Sponge's most distinctive features are its harp shaped vanes, which give it its unique name, as well as it's existence as a carnivorous sponge. The Lyre sponge is not shaped like a harp just for looks; The shape is crucial to the sponge's ability to capture its prey. The "strings" of the lyre are actually barbed with a velcro-like shape, which ensnares prey that drift through them. The prey is then covered in a membrane and absorbed into the sponge as it digests it. This is one of the only ways this sponge could gain nutrition in the hostile environment of the seafloor.]]> 2017-12-02 04:41:14 UTC https://padlet.com/smarkowitz19/8gjieynnsa6l/wish/212477167 smarkowitz19 https://padlet.com/smarkowitz19/8gjieynnsa6l/wish/212477597 The Lyre Sponge's reproductive system is also very interesting. The balls at the top of the sponge's "strings" are actually pouches which release sperm into the water. When this sperm reaches another sponge, The sponge begins to grow larvae. The bulbs in the middle of the veins swell when fertilized.]]> 2017-12-02 04:56:00 UTC https://padlet.com/smarkowitz19/8gjieynnsa6l/wish/212477597 smarkowitz19 https://padlet.com/smarkowitz19/8gjieynnsa6l/wish/212477721 https://www.mbari.org/scientists-discover-extraordinary-new-carnivorous-sponge/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chondrocladia_lyra

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VC3tAtXdaik]]> 2017-12-02 05:00:56 UTC https://padlet.com/smarkowitz19/8gjieynnsa6l/wish/212477721