These sponges, ranging in color from pink and purple to black and red, had never been seen before by human eyes. The sponges were found in 60 feet of water in a deep sink hole at the southeastern end of the atoll, located between deep ridges of coral reef. The water in the sink hole was very calm, away from the wave action of the barrier reef edge. One of Ralph De Felice's new sponge discoveries Heavy wave action typically hinders the growth of sponges, except for encrusting varieties which grow close to rocks, coral and other substrate material and can stand up to the pounding action of waves. Because of this, most species of sponges found in Hawaii are encrusted species.
People like to look at big, charismatic animals like fish, turtles and marine mammals.
Although the sponges that were found are charismatic and colorful as far as sponges go, it's tough for people to understand their importance in an ecosystem. Microscopic Sponge Typically unnoticed and under appreciated, sponges are the oldest multicellular animals on the planet. One scientist described sponges as 'the most efficient vacuum cleaners of the sea' because they can pump more than 10 times their body volume each hour. According to scientific estimates there are 15,000 species of sponges in the world, of which an estimated 200-300 are found in Hawaii. Of these, scientists believe that more than half are found only in Hawaii.