
Pink Puff Ball Sponge
Goby´s Rock, Lankayan, Sabah (2015).
Small delicate prickly ball about 1-2cm in diameter, on a short conical stem (called the capitate structure). The ball has fine sheets between the prickles. Seen singly but sometimes a few seen near one another growing on coral rubble. This puffy fluff is just a tiny part of the sponge. The bulk of the sponge is actually buried.The main sponge is bulbous and spherical. Colour usually a deep maroon to bright pink. The capitate structure is where the water is 'exhaled' from the sponge, and also where propagules (new sponges) are dispersed.
Habitat: Indo-Pacific.
http://www.wildsingapore.com/wildfacts/porifera/oceanapia.htm