Sponge Reef
Sponge reefs serve an important ecological function as habitat, breeding and nursery areas for fish and invertebrates. The reefs are currently threatened by the fishery, offshore oil and gas industries. Attempts are being made to protect these unique ecosystems through fishery closures and potentially the establishment of Marine Protected Areas (MAPs) around the sponge reefs.
Hexactinellid sponge reefs were common in the Late Jurassic period, and were believed to have gone extinct during or shortly after the Cretaceous period. Living sponge reefs were discovered in the Queen Charlotte Basin (QCB) in 1987-1988, and were reported in the Georgia Basin (GB) in 2005. These sponge reefs are considered to be “living fossils.”
Read more about Sponge Reef: Characteristics of Hexactinellid Sponges, Location of Sponge Reefs, Structure of Sponge Reefs, “Living Fossils”, Ecological Significance, Destruction of Sponge Reefs, Protection, See Also
Famous quotes containing the words sponge and/or reef:
“Alas for the affairs of men! When they are fortunate you might compare them to a shadow; and if they are unfortunate, a wet sponge with one dash wipes the picture away.”
—Aeschylus (525–456 B.C.)
“Striking his former happiness against the reef of justice he has perished unwept for and unseen.”
—Aeschylus (525–456 B.C.)