Spongillidae

Spongillidae

[spən′jil·ə‚dē]
(invertebrate zoology)
A family of fresh- and brackish water sponges in the order Haplosclerida which are chiefly gray, brown, or white in color, and encrusting, massive, or branching in form.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific & Technical Terms, 6E, Copyright © 2003 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Spongillidae

 

a family of freshwater invertebrates of the order Keratosa. Found on underwater objects in the form of irregular or treelike overgrowths 1 m high. Their color is green, yellow, or cinnamon-brown. The skeleton consists of siliceous spicules connected by an organic substance called spongin. The Spongillidae are widespread throughout the world. Sixteen genera are known; of these, four live in the rivers and lakes of the USSR. They reproduce either sexually or by budding. In the temperate zone the sponges die off, forming a large number of so-called winter buds or gemmules—spherical bodies (less than 1 mm in diameter) enclosed in a strong protective membrane. In the spring the gemmules germinate into young sponges. Spongillidae may do harm by settling in water pipes and clogging them. Powder made from dry Spongillidae is a popular remedy rubbed into the skin in the form of ointment for rheumatic and other pains.

REFERENCE

Rezvoi, P. D. “Presnovodnye gubki.” Moscow-Leningrad, 1936. (Fauna SSSR, vol. 2. issue 2.)
The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979). © 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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References in periodicals archive ?
Six families are currently recognized, of which three Metaniidae, Potamolepidae, and Spongillidae occur in the United Slates.
Freshwater Sponges (Porifera: Spongillida) of Tennessee
Two freshwater sponge taxa (Porifera: Spongillidae) were identified by anatomical features of gemmoscleres and rotules.
Stratigraphic and paleoenvironmental reconstruction of a mid-Pliocene fossil site in the High Arctic (Ellesmere Island, Nunavut): evidence of an ancient peatland with beaver activity
Fossil freshwater sponges (Porifera: Spongillidae) from Western Canada: an overlooked group of quaternary paleoecological indicators.
Investigation of freshwater sponges spicules deposits in a karstic lake in Brazil/Investigacao de deposito de espiculas de esponjas de agua doce em um lago carstico no Brasil
At least six genera of freshwater sponges inhabit the western gulf slope drainages (Old, 1936; Sublette, 1957; Poirrier, 1972; Davis, 1980a, 1980b; Manconi and Pronzato, 2005), but only Davis (1980a, 1980b) documents occurrence of Class Demospongiae: Spongillidae in streams west of the Gulf Coastal Plain ecoregion of Texas.
First record and habitat associations of Spongilla cenota (Class Demospongiae) within streams of the Edwards Plateau, Texas, USA
Distribucion geografica de las esponjas argentinas (Porifera: Spongillidae, Potamolepidae y Metaniidae).
Arqueoestratigrafia de referencia para el registro de la ocupacion humana durante los siglos XVI y XVII en la localidad Esteco I, Departamento de Anta, Salta, Argentina
Larvae of Sisyridae are associated with colonies of freshwater sponges (Porifera: Haplosclerida: Spongillidae) where they live and obtain their food.
First record of Sisyridae (Neuroptera) in Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil, with bionomic notes on Sisyra Panama
Spongillidae is the only identified family of sponges found in North American fresh waters.
A report of freshwater sponge (Porifera: Spongillidae) in central Nebraska
Five species of sponges, belonging to five genera and two families (Table II) were detected occupying distinct substrates on the Brazilian bank of the Itaipu Lake: Trochospongilla repens (Hinde, 1888; Figure 14), Corvospongilla seckti Bonetto & Ezcurra de Drago, 1966 (Figures 9-11, 15) and Radiospongilla amazonensis Volkmer-Ribeiro & Maciel, 1983 (Figure 16), the three belonging to the Spongillidae Gray, 1867 family, Oncosclera navicella (Carter, 1881; Figure 13), and Potamophloios guairensis n.
Colonization of hydroelectric reservoirs in Brazil by freshwater sponges, with special attention on Itaipu/Colonizacion de reservorios de plantas hidroelectricas en Brasil por esponjas de agua dulce, con enfasis en el de Itaipu/Colonizacao de reservatorios de hidroeletricas no Brasil por esponjas de agua doce, com destaque para o de Itaipu
The distribution and taxonomy of freshwater sponges (Porifera: Spongillidae) in North America has not received widespread attention, although some notable works exist for the entire United States (Penney & Racek 1968), and regions surrounding the Great Lakes (Potts 1887; Smith 1921; Old 1931; Jewell 1935; Neidhoefer 1940; Eshleman 1950; Ricciardi & Reiswig 1993).
Distribution of freshwater sponges and bryozoans in northwest Indiana
Most studied species are associated with Spongillidae or usually collected as free-swimming individuals.
Revision of the subgenus Unionicola (Acari: Unionicolidae)
The Sisyridae are one of two families of neuropterans whose larvae are fully aquatic (Winterton el al, 2010) and lai-vae rely on freshwater sponges Porifera: Spongillidae) for survival (Brown, 1952).
Distribution of Sisyridae and Freshwater Sponges in the upper-Susquehanna Watershed, Otsego County, New York with a New Locality for Climacia areolaris (Hagen)

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