Look Alikes
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How to Distinguish from Similar Species: Several other species of boring sponge are found here, but the bright yellow color and presence of only tylostyles distinguish this common sponge.
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Distribution
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Geographical Range: Worldwide. On the Pacific coast, Baja California to Alaska. Mostly subtidal and less common in California and south
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Habitat
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Depth Range: Low intertidal and subtidal to 120 m or more
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Comprehensive Description
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As a member of Class Demospongiae, the spicules are silicious but not 6-rayed nor fused into a lattice. This species bores in the shells of mollusks and plates of barnacles, and the main portion of the sponge which is exposed consists of small yellow patches 1-3 mm wide. The only spicules in this species are megasclere spicules: tylostyles of 200-310 micron length. The species does not produce microscleres. The tylostyles are scattered through both the surface and interior of the sponge.
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Comprehensive Description
provided by Invertebrates of the Salish Sea
Biology/Natural History: Though just small patches of the sponge are visible at the surface of the shell, the sponge excavates large patches on the interior of the shell which weakens the shell greatly. While living within the shell, two types of structures are visible through the patches. Oscula have one contractile, papillated osculum visible, while the openings with pores include a small mushroom-shaped papilla filled with ostia. Tylostyles are a type of monactine megasclere silicious spicule. Monactine means that the spicules are formed by growth in only one direction so the megasclere has only one pointed end, and megasclere means that the spicules are large and areoften used to form the shape of the sponge. A tylostyle is a monactine megasclere that has a knob on one end and a point on the other.like a railroad spike or nail. The sponge excavates shells by first softening them with acid then chipping off small chips and carrying them to the surface of the shell to discard. Oyster farmers consider this species a pest because it weakens the oysters. Predators include the nudibranch Doriopsilla albopunctata.
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Habitat
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When small this sponge lives in shells of mollusks such as rock scallops, oysters, or moon snails, or in barnacle plates. May overgrow them and thickly coat the substrate if larger. In our area they are especially common in giant rock scallops, Crassodoma gigantea. May bore into corals in the tropics.
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Cliona californiana
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Cliona californiana, the yellow boring sponge, boring sponge or sulphur sponge, is a species of demosponge belonging to the family Clionaidae. It is native to the north-eastern Pacific Ocean and burrows into the shell valves of bivalve molluscs.
Description
The yellow boring sponge inhabits living bivalve molluscs, boring into the shell valves. The only parts of the sponge which are visible from the outside are small yellow patches up to 3 mm (0.1 in) in diameter, sometimes containing small oscula (openings). The sponge spicules are silicaceous (glassy) and are scattered throughout the sponge tissues. They consist entirely of megascleres known as "tylostyles", which are a kind of spicule with a single shaft, with a point on one end and a knob on the other. These characteristic spicules distinguish this sponge from any other sponge species found in the locality.[2]
Distribution and habitat
The yellow boring sponge is native to the north-eastern Pacific Ocean, its range extending from Alaska to Baja California. It is most often found in the subtidal zone but also occurs in the intertidal zone. It is more common in the colder waters in the northern part of its range than it is in the southern part, and it occurs at depths down to about 120 m (400 ft).[2]
Ecology
A newly settled young sponge makes its way to the shell of a suitable host and bores into a valve of the mollusc (or the plates of the barnacle).[2] Its tunnelling activities weaken the shell, and scallop and oyster farmers consider the sponge to be a pest. When burrowing, it secretes acid which dissolves the shell, and then it breaks off small pieces of shell and moves them to the exterior.[2] When it outgrows its tunnels, it spreads across the surface of the valve as a thick coating layer, and when it gets too big for its host, it becomes a free-living sponge with a length of up to 9 cm (3.5 in) and a height of 6.5 cm (2.6 in).[3] These sponges are common growing on the thick-shelled giant rock scallop (Crassadoma gigantea) and on oysters.[2] The sponge is preyed on by the nudibranch Doriopsilla albopunctata.[2]
References
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Cliona californiana: Brief Summary
provided by wikipedia EN
Cliona californiana, the yellow boring sponge, boring sponge or sulphur sponge, is a species of demosponge belonging to the family Clionaidae. It is native to the north-eastern Pacific Ocean and burrows into the shell valves of bivalve molluscs.
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