Photo: Pauline Walsh Jacobson · Image source ·CC BY 4.0
Animal profile · Other aquatic life · sponge
Giant barrel sponge
Xestospongia muta
The giant barrel sponge is one of the largest sponges on Caribbean coral reefs. Its barrel-shaped body filters enormous volumes of seawater and provides shelter for other reef animals.
Not a fish · an aquatic neighborWater
Saltwater
Caribbean coral reefs and nearby deep reef habitats.
Temperature
Range not established
A dependable species-specific wild temperature range was not established from the reviewed sources.
Size
Up to about 1.8 m (6 ft) tall and 0.9 m (3 ft) wide
A large sponge can be taller than a refrigerator is wide.
Lifespan
More than 2,000 years in some individuals
Life expectancy varies with place, conditions, and what scientists have been able to observe.
01 · Signature adaptation
What does it do?
It is sessile and remains attached to the reef for life. The hollow barrel creates habitat for fish, invertebrates, bacteria, and algae.
02 · Home coordinates
Where does it live?
Caribbean and western Atlantic coral reefs.
Regions: Caribbean Sea · Florida Keys · Gulf of Mexico · Puerto Rico
03 · The menu
What does it eat?
It filters seawater and selectively consumes tiny particles, with much of its food coming from dissolved organic material and detritus.
Filter feeder: cyanobacteria, bacteria-sized plankton, detritus, dissolved organic carbon.
04 · Remember this
Two wow facts
Ancient reef resident
Some giant barrel sponges may live for more than 2,000 years.
Sources [1]
Daily filtration
A sponge can filter up to about 50,000 times its own volume in water each day.
Sources [2]