Algae , Sponge, something else?

[Ron Reefman]

20180811_142928 by Ron Lindensmith, on Flickr

20180811_143001 by Ron Lindensmith, on Flickr

I found a small one of these in my shallow reef tank a couple of years ago and assumed it was a sponge. It didn't grow, but it didn't shrink and go away like most sponges do in aquariums. But after about 4 months it just disappeared?

As some of you know, I snorkel a lot in the Florida Keys (link to a thread about snorkeling and collecting is in my signature below). BTW, lots of photos and location help. Two weeks ago we (my wife and I) were snorkeling in the Keys and I collected a couple of sponges. The purple one and the orange one started to deteriorate in my holding tank, but this green ball has survived and seems to be doing OK.

Can anybody ID it? The one I found in my tank was so small it was hard to tell what it was. I thought at the time that it was a sponge. Although this one doesn't look at all like a sponge to me. There are no big exhale holes. And what about those spikes?

 

[Crabs McJones]

Not sure, but its wicked looking whatever it is. Following along for an answer

 

[Gareth elliott]

Bornetella sp?

 

[KJ]

Sponge

 

[Ron Reefman]

Bornetella sp?

I appreciate the lead, but having looked up Bornetella, I didn't see anything that looked close enough to this thing. Most of those were like bubble algae and hollow. This thing has some weight to it, it's obviously not hollow.

Sponge

It's possible, but I've done a lot of looking at sponges to try and ID it with no luck. And most sponges have at least one big excurrent hole and a lot of incurrent pores. On close inspection (under water just in case it is a sponge) it doesn't appear to have either. It's almost like it's a colony of smaller units.

 

[ThunderGoose]

Not sure but it's very interesting looking, I sent the pict to a friend of mine whose a marine biologist to see if she knows. I'll let you know if she does. If. Following.

 

[Maritimer]

While there are openings between some of the bumps that _could_ be incurrent openings, I'm thinkin' some kind of algae here. Beyond that, though . . . all I've got is curiosity.

~Bruce

 

[Dancingmad]

That green ball looks like a sponge of some sort - I have a purple sponge that grows in a matte and sends out spikes like that (almost like polyps but not). Do the spikes stay like that all the time or come/go?

If its a sponge, whatever it is, it looks totally cool and gnarly. Awesome!

Also reminds me of those gumballs that fall off trees are absolutely suck to step on (but they're brown).

 

[Ron Reefman]

Not sure but it's very interesting looking, I sent the pict to a friend of mine whose a marine biologist to see if she knows. I'll let you know if she does. If. Following.

Thanks for the follow up. Anything will be helpful.

I volunteer at the Bailey Matthews National Shell Museum and I've asked Becka and Jose, the marine biologists there and I'm waiting for a reply. But it probably won't come until Mon or Tues. It's the hot summer off season here and they are having serious red tide issues with sea turtles, dolphins and goliath grouper washing up on the beach. We even had a whale shark wash up dead!

While there are openings between some of the bumps that _could_ be incurrent openings, I'm thinkin' some kind of algae here. Beyond that, though . . . all I've got is curiosity.

Curiosity... exactly!

That green ball looks like a sponge of some sort - I have a purple sponge that grows in a matte and sends out spikes like that (almost like polyps but not). Do the spikes stay like that all the time or come/go?

If its a sponge, whatever it is, it looks totally cool and gnarly. Awesome!

The spikes change slowly over time, as in over days or weeks. If we don't get an answer, I'll keep posting pics so you can see the changes.

"...totally cool and gnarly. Awesome!" I couldn't have said it better! I alway enjoy seeing weird stuff when we snorkel and if I can keep weird stuff alive in my aquarium safely, that's even better. This thing looks so alien!

 

[ThunderGoose]

My marine bio friends wanted more information - movement, soft or hard - and suggested posting it to iNaturalist (an app that has lots of naturalists who can help with identification).

Their best guess seems to be a tunicate with an algae symbiot.

 

[Bradley Keck]

Thanks for the follow up. Anything will be helpful.

I volunteer at the Bailey Matthews National Shell Museum and I've asked Becka and Jose, the marine biologists there and I'm waiting for a reply. But it probably won't come until Mon or Tues. It's the hot summer off season here and they are having serious red tide issues with sea turtles, dolphins and goliath grouper washing up on the beach. We even had a whale shark wash up dead!



Curiosity... exactly!



The spikes change slowly over time, as in over days or weeks. If we don't get an answer, I'll keep posting pics so you can see the changes.

"...totally cool and gnarly. Awesome!" I couldn't have said it better! I alway enjoy seeing weird stuff when we snorkel and if I can keep weird stuff alive in my aquarium safely, that's even better. This thing looks so alien!

The situation in SW Florida is sickening Ron. My family has been vacationing in Englewood for 25 years, and this past July was the worst Red tide we have ever seen. Our first day, the beach was full of dead porcupine puffers and cow fish. The next day a 3ft grouper, 5ft tarpon (biggest Tarpon I have ever seen in person), and a large male Loggerhead washed up dead. My Wife took a video of me helping the Turtle Patrol carry the turtle up the beach and posted it on Facebook. The video went viral with over 65,000 views and was on WINK nightly news. We were shocked after we came back to Indy and heard that the Red tide worsened. Truly sad to see. All to protect sugar fields? As far as that alien pod you found, I'm gonna say it's a spore of some kind. From the looks of it, that sucker is taking hold and gonna sprout into something

 

[Ron Reefman]

My marine bio friends wanted more information - movement, soft or hard - and suggested posting it to iNaturalist (an app that has lots of naturalists who can help with identification).

Their best guess seems to be a tunicate with an algae symbiot.

The additional information I can add is this.
1) It does not move on it's own and it does attach itself to things. It is now attached to the dead stony coral branch I set it on a few days ago.
2) It's neither soft nor hard, it's 'firm'. When taken between my fingers is can be squeezed a little bit with a little bit of pressure and it goes back into it's round shape when the pressure is released. It's firmness is very much like other firm sponges. I don't want to squeeze it too hard and damage it.
3) The spikes are firm but flexible. The tips move a bit in the current, but on the whole, the entire spike does not move much if at all.

I'll try iNaturalist , thanks for the lead!

The situation in SW Florida is sickening Ron. My family has been vacationing in Englewood for 25 years, and this past July was the worst Red tide we have ever seen. Our first day, the beach was full of dead porcupine puffers and cow fish. The next day a 3ft grouper, 5ft tarpon (biggest Tarpon I have ever seen in person), and a large male Loggerhead washed up dead. My Wife took a video of me helping the Turtle Patrol carry the turtle up the beach and posted it on Facebook. The video went viral with over 65,000 views and was on WINK nightly news. We were shocked after we came back to Indy and heard that the Red tide worsened. Truly sad to see. All to protect sugar fields? As far as that alien pod you found, I'm gonna say it's a spore of some kind. From the looks of it, that sucker is taking hold and gonna sprout into something

Mote Marine says the red tide is slowing going away. FINALLY! And they also say that red tide is not CAUSED by the flow from Lake Okeechobee as it starts further out in the Gulf and not near shore. And historically red tide has been around for year and years before man diverted water from the Everglades to create sugar cane plantations. Mote Marine isn't even 100% sure that the runoff causes the red tide to be worse or to grow but that is a possibility. I'm close to you in terms of time here in SW Florida and my wife has been here for 30 years and this is by far the worst red tide we have ever seen.

As for my spiky green orb... I saw a science fiction series on TV about a spiky black orb that fell from the sky and landed all over the place and caused havoc on earth. Maybe this one is here to get sealife to rise up against us! ;Nailbiting;Droid

 

[Bradley Keck]

We love to go to Mote! Have not been there in several years, and looking forward to going back to see their Renovation! I've been told that the discharge from Lake O. is not related, and heck, maybe that is the case. I trust their opinion for sure, but I can't imagine anything other than unnatural levels of nutrients causing such a large bloom. Where that's coming from, I don't know, but I hope they figure it out. I know that nasty blue-green algae in the Fort Myers area is coming from lake O. Red tide blooms do occur naturally out in the gulf, it's just a matter of whether west coast run-off of all forms, including Lake O. discharge, directly affect the severity of it.

Keep us updated on that thing, if it doesn't eat you first

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

I’m confused.
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/algae-sponge-alien-attack-orb.438841/#post-5013987

 

[Ron Reefman]

We love to go to Mote! Have not been there in several years, and looking forward to going back to see their Renovation! I've been told that the discharge from Lake O. is not related, and heck, maybe that is the case. I trust their opinion for sure, but I can't imagine anything other than unnatural levels of nutrients causing such a large bloom. Where that's coming from, I don't know, but I hope they figure it out. I know that nasty blue-green algae in the Fort Myers area is coming from lake O. Red tide blooms do occur naturally out in the gulf, it's just a matter of whether west coast run-off of all forms, including Lake O. discharge, directly affect the severity of it.

Keep us updated on that thing, if it doesn't eat you first

The stinky blue green algae bloom in the canals here is definitely related to the releases from the lake. They have the same issue on the east coast of Florida as well.

Trust me, as soon as I know what this thing is (or what planet it's from) I'll post it here in big letters!

I’m confused.
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/algae-sponge-alien-attack-orb.438841/#post-5013987

What are you confused about? The number of views and replies I got here with the first post wasn't getting the amount of help I needed. So I posted it again in a more frequented forum and got more people involved. I hope that's OK?

 

[cracker]

The stinky blue green algae bloom in the canals here is definitely related to the releases from the lake. They have the same issue on the east coast of Florida as well.

Hello, Local news says there is a bad outbreak of Bad algea in our "St John's " river . I'm way up on the North East coast . Not a lot of agro or livestock but the residential boom is out of control in the past 15/20 yeers.

 

[cracker]

@Ron Reefman Thunder Goose has an App or something that might help with a positive ID.
"i naruralist" or something like that .

 

[ThunderGoose]

Yes, iNaturalist works on phone or by the website at https://www.inaturalist.org/.

 

[cracker]

Very Cool ! I'm all the time wanting an Id on some animal/plant I see here in Fl. I'm sure to save the link. Thanks

 

[SHNICI]

I bet on Ball Sponge, and the "tentacles" there are tendrils, which can use to move to another place. Some sponges are able to do it w/o problem xD