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Sponges on a reef
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Kevin View Drop Down
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Joined: September 12 2002
Location: Pleasant Grove
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Points: 1044 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Kevin Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: Sponges on a reef
    Posted: July 05 2004 at 9:22am
As you may have read in another post, I was in cancun recently and for part of it I was able to go to cozumel and do some scuba diving. One thing I found very interesting is the large number of HUGE sponges found on the reef. It seemed like there was more sponge life than coral life and some of these sponges where 4-5 feet tall by 3 feet across. Some others were bright purple and very pretty. Almost all of them were in the light. Most of them resemebled something similar to a volcano or a cone with a large hole in the center. I am wondering why we don't have more sponge life in our tanks and why the sponges sold in stores never resemble the ones I saw on the reef. Do they not do well in a tank?

One other tag along question, how much does the reef tank hobby hurt the reef system. While scuba diving I noticed quite a few corals and some of them were ones I have seen in a store. I also found that while there were a lot of coral down there, it doesn't seem like it would take very long to completely harvest all of some species of coral? In our aquarium trade how is this regulated so we don't decemate the populations of some corals that are more popular, or is it even regulated?
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Adam Blundell View Drop Down
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Points: 18526 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Adam Blundell Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 05 2004 at 9:38am

Wow lots of questions.  I'll my best to answer them, and hope others will to.

Sponges just don't collect and ship well.  They need to stay submerged in water the whole time, and in terms of collecting for the hobby, that just doesn't work.  Most corals are broken off... taken up to a little raft.... thrown up into a bucket... taken back to a facility.... sits on the floor for a while...  some guy throws it in a tank.  Sponges can't handle that trauma.

As for the hobby impact.  Sure the hobby removes thousands of pounds of cora, rock, and invert life every year.  We're certainly part of the problem. 
However, global warming will kill more corals this year than all of the hobby collected corals over all the years added up.  So do we damage?  Compartively no. 
As for live rock, it is actually growing faster (so it is reported) than it is being harvested, even in heavy collection zones such as the Fijian Island.  In some places, the coral is basically doomed right now, so anything that is removed and taken for the hobby is actually the best chance that coral has to survive.  In fact far more live rock is taken from the reefs to make roads than is taken for the hobby.
But then again, in other areas, over collection is decreasing the health of the reefs. 

Marine Aquarium Council (MAC www.aquariumcouncil.org) is the group responsible for regulating, and deciding what is a renewable collection.  They govern from the collection site all the way to the wholesalers (struggling with retail so far).  Regulation is in the beggining stages, only been around really for a couple years.  In some areas there still aren't any regulations. 

Adam 
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Jared Wood View Drop Down
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Points: 490 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Jared Wood Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: July 06 2004 at 8:57am

We have some sponge that is growing quite well in our aquarium.  But then we have others that are steadily shrinking each week.

I think that part of the problem (for us) is that we want our tank to look clean, shimmering, and pristine.  We want our water to be crystal clear and our sand to be white.  I wonder if keeping our tank and water so clean removes food in the water that otherwise would be there for sponges to consume.
In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth ... then He let it cycle.

Have you read my dinosaur theory yet?
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