The Winslow mail., 1899-05-27
SPON = u~A} JF GLASS.
Queer Subma. me Animals of Cali
fornia Waters.
Beautiful Specimens Found I'm Deep
Water Fishing AIong the shores
of Santa Catalina Is
land.

It is not generally known that the
beautiful animals known as glass
sT1onges are found within the borders
OF the United States, yet Cne species at
at least is common, Though rarely
taken. off the coast of the Southern Cali
fornian islands, espe ecially on the so-
called gr2uper banks Of Santa Cata-
lira, where fishing is carried on in wa
ter 500 or Geo feet deep.
It was here al attractive specimen
was Lately found, being brought up on
fish hook. The sponge was species
! of Holtenia, probably Holtenia Carpen-
terra, about 12 inches in height and
nearly six in diameter; the long glass
! like roots had been torn off when il was
brought up. In appearance the sponge
was veritable porcupine; long needle
| ike spicules standing out all over it,
the longest three inches in length,
needles so sharp and brittle that it was
! difficult to hold or touch the sponge
ard at Il glance it resembled some odd
or fanciful cactus.
| The sponge was vase shaped, and
would hold three pints of fluid, bulging
the top sufficiently large to admit the
| closed hand. The long spicules reach
ing out from it presented splendid APP
pearance when held up to the sun, and
resembled glossy hairs, cleaning and
scintillating wherever the sun flashed
along their surfaces. Many Of the spi-
cules were oyergrown with an attract
i've coral!ine, so that they appeared
brauched like the limbs of a tree. In
these mimic branches hung pendent
many miniature pink k-hued star fishes
and shrimps, while fastened to them,
coiled and interlaced, were the barrow
like egg cases of q skate.
That these sponges are fairly COM
mon in deep water offshore is evident
by the small specimens often brought
up and the pieces found in the outer is
lands, especially San Nicolas.
The glass sponges are sO called be-
cause their skeleton, or the spicules,
resemble glass, being formed of silica
instead of lime, and closely resembling
spun glass.
The most beautiful of the group is
| the Venus flower basket, or Euplectella
aspergillum, which represents vase
cf spun glass of the most bea utiful de-
scription. When the first specimen was
found it was sold at a fabulous price,
and its true nature was not suspected.
! But finally a specimen was taken by
naturalist, who made the interesting
! discovery that the delicate and fragile
| glass-like vase, that seemed TO be the
work of some cunning East Indian, was
| nothing mote nor less than the skele
ton Of a sponge whose spicules were
| silicious. In the water and alive the
! sponge is not an attractive object, be-
! ing of a gray color and half buried in
| the mud, anchored by long glass-like
! streamers. But once dead and relieved
Of its covering, it becomes one Of the
most resplendent objects of the sea-a
| fairy vase, that might we'll have been
modelled by the sea gods as gift to
Venus.
This sponge has the spicules so ar
ranged that they present the appear
ance of squares. 1t is closed at the top
and sides, hollow in the interior, and is
occasionally the, prison of small crusta-
ceans, which enter theinterstices when
very young and unable to escape be-
come prisoners for life, and in the skel-
eton may be seen with their claws pro-
truding through the opening, creating
much wonder among the uninitiated as
to how they obtained ingress into the
CLASSY prison.
Another interesting glass sponge is
| Hyalonema, which resembles a glass
rope. The sponge itself is small cup
perched upon long series of glass-like
stems, which is buried in the mud. This
was for long time sold as the skeleton
of the little coral polyph which are par
asites ou it's stems.-Prof. c. f. Holder.
in Scientific American.