[QUOTE][URL="http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/extinction-countdown/files/2011/11/neptunes-cup-2011.jpg"][IMG]http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/extinction-countdown/files/2011/11/neptunes-cup-2011.jpg[/IMG][/URL]More than 100 years after it was last seen, the giant Neptune’s cup sponge ([I]Cliona patera[/I]) has been rediscovered off the coast of southern Singapore.
First discovered in 1822, the sponges grew so large—a meter or more in both height and diameter—that their cup-like structures were sometimes used as tubs for babies. But their size made them valuable to collectors around the world and they were overharvested until they disappeared from Singapore in the 1870s. The last time living sponges were seen was 1908, when collectors found some in West Java, Indonesia. The species was then thought to be extinct.
But in the 1990s, a few dead Neptune’s cup sponges turned near Australia, giving researchers hope that they might find these massive Porifera again in the oceans around Singapore.
And now that hope has been met: Two living Neptune’s cup sponges have been found near Singapore’s [URL="http://www.wildsingapore.com/places/sji.htm"]St. John’s Island[/URL]. The first specimen was found in March by biologists with the environmental engineering firm DHI Water & Environment (S) Pte Ltd. A second sponge was found 50 meters away.
[URL="http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/extinction-countdown/files/2011/11/neptunes-cup-1925.jpg"][IMG]http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/extinction-countdown/files/2011/11/neptunes-cup-1925-300x225.jpg[/IMG][/URL]“When we came across the sponge, we knew immediately that this was something very different,” marine biologist Karenne Tun said in a [URL="http://www.dhi.com.sg/News/2011/11/15/DHIScientistsRediscoverALongLostTreasure_TheReturnOfTheNeptune%E2%80%99sCup.aspx"]prepared release[/URL] from DHI.
Writing for [URL="http://mygreenspace.nparks.gov.sg/a-marine-marvel-the-return-of-neptunes-cup/"]My Green Space[/URL], the newsletter of Singapore’s National Parks Board, Tun and fellow biologist Eugene Goh said the sponges were “pale yellow to white, and resembled shallow bowls standing on robust stalks. Unlike other sponges found in Singapore waters, the Neptune’s cup sponge felt firm and leathery.”
Sponge expert Lim Swee Cheng, author of the book [URL="http://www.amazon.com/Guide-Sponges-Singapore-Swee-Cheng/dp/9810818807"][I]A Guide to Sponges of Singapore[/I][/URL], was called in to identify the two animals as members of the long-lost species. “My heart skipped a beat when I saw it in Singapore waters this year,” Mr. Lim recently wrote on his [I]Facebook [/I]page.
Neither of the sponges have reached the epic, meter-high height and diameter of legend—both are described as “young” and are only 30 centimeters in diameter—but they will now be studied in their natural environment to find out how they grow and how to conserve them.
Some assumptions about the species are already proving false. Previously thought to be a slow-growing species, the two sponges actually grew several centimeters between April and August, said Tun.
Meanwhile, the scientists hope to find more of the sponges out there. “The presence of two young Neptune’s Cup sponges within a surveyed area of 50m by 50m signals hope that more are present within the area,” Tun told [URL="http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_734436.html"][I]Straights Times[/I][/URL]. “More importantly, [it] points to the possibility of adult populations present within Singapore’s coastal waters.”
[I]Photo 1: One of the recently rediscovered Neptune’s cup sponges, courtesy of DHI Water & Environment. Photo 2: A 1925 image of a Neptune’s cup sponge being used for a child’s bath[/I][/QUOTE]
[URL]http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/extinction-countdown/2011/11/17/amazing-neptunes-cup-sponge-rediscovered-singapore/[/URL]
Great discovery. Funny, hardly hear of my country on the news.
Lets [i]not[/i] kill them this time.
[QUOTE=OvB;33325537]Lets [i]not[/i] kill them this time.[/QUOTE]
But what will our children use as bathtubs?
[QUOTE=scientificamerican]
their cup-like structures were sometimes used as tubs for babies.[/QUOTE]
:3:
Am I the only one that irrationaly finds spongey/gelatinous marine life inherently creepy/disgusting?
Shit like that just makes me uncomfortable as hell.
spongebob??
I never knew sponges were extinct...
Yay Singapore. Went there this summer holiday.
I suppose they DIDN'T "harvest" these two they found now?
[b]Edit:[/b]
Oh, no they didn't :).
[quote]that their cup-like structures were sometimes used as tubs for babies[/quote]
Spongebath :v:
[QUOTE=Mr. Someguy;33325601]I never knew sponges were extinct...[/QUOTE]
They're not. Just this particular species. Sponges come in all shapes and sizes, from really small, to huge.
[editline]18th November 2011[/editline]
I want to see that close up shot that guy is taking. Unless he's just posing to look important.
And that is where the Global Warming is heading.
[QUOTE=GlebGuy;33325890]And that is where the Global Warming is heading.[/QUOTE]
Into the sea where extinct species still seem to be alive?
[QUOTE=MyAlt91;33325903]Into the sea where extinct species still seem to be alive?[/QUOTE]
No, into a sponge.
Woo Singapore!
Great discovery! Marine life always have fascinated me..
Imagine how much the sea level would rise if we took it out
[QUOTE=Mister Royzo;33326644]Imagine how much the sea level would rise if we took it out[/QUOTE]
No man. If you wanna change the sea level, remove the whales.
Those fatasses are taking up WAY too much space.
It's not like they contribute to the food chain anyway. [img]http://www.facepunch.com/fp/emoot/v.gif[/img]
I wouldn't be surprised if they find a pineapple a few meters away.
Looks like a mushroom.
I didn't know we have giant sponges living in our seas
I went to Singapore before and I saw a lady-man. Are you all lady men?
[QUOTE=Elfy;33331197]I went to Singapore before and I saw a lady-man. Are you all lady men?[/QUOTE]
the fuck?
Use it to breed even larger sea sponges.
[QUOTE=Mister Royzo;33326644]Imagine how much the sea level would rise if we took it out[/QUOTE]
just don't wring it out on land, might cause flooding
[QUOTE=Chrille;33331221]Use it to breed even larger sea sponges.[/QUOTE]
With cats. New species is created, the walking cat-sponge.
[QUOTE=urundeadmom;33331549]With cats. New species is created, the walking cat-sponge.[/QUOTE]
Because Sea sponges are Felines.
[QUOTE=Aerkhan;33331621]Because Sea sponges are Felines.[/QUOTE]
Not yet they are not. soon.
[QUOTE=Elfy;33331197]I went to Singapore before and I saw a lady-man. Are you all lady men?[/QUOTE]
Of course.
[QUOTE]Sponge expert[/QUOTE]
:v:
[QUOTE=Chrille;33331221]Use it to breed even larger sea sponges.[/QUOTE]
I like the way this man thinks
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