Class

Demospongiae (Demosponges)

Halichondria panicea. Photo: (c) Ken-ichi Ueda, some rights reserved (CC BY)

Demospongiae is the most diverse class in the phylum Porifera. They include 90% of all species of sponges with nearly 7,000 species worldwide (World Porifera Database). They are predominantly leuconoid in structure. Their “skeletons” are made of spicules consisting of fibers of the protein spongin, the mineral silica, or both. Where spicules of silica are present, they have a different shape from those in the otherwise similar glass sponges.

— Wikipedia

Subtaxa

Where in Humboldt



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