Collospongia auris

Cambie & Kernan, 1990

Blue Ear Sponge

Range: Indo-West Pacific Ocean

Natural Environment: Inhabits fringing reefs where it seems to prefer calm, but highly turbid waters.

General Husbandry: Rarely seen in the tropical home aquarium trade.

There is some thought this species differs from almost all other sponge species as it may do better under moderate lighting such as PAR 250 - 300. Nevertheless, it hails from highly turbid waters where it probably receives most of its nutritional needs from filter feeding surrounding waters.

It also appears to be a fast growing, possibly an invasive species, although quite attractive.

Bottom-line, until its needs are clearly established, placement in moderately lit areas and fed once daily with preserved commercial phytoplankton and zooplankton products, or that of animal and plant powders that produce suspended products in the bulk waters should suffice in keeping it in a healthy condition.

Does not ship well, but if you get a healthy piece, it will fair well in the aquarium.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Porifera

Class: Demospongiae

Subclass: Keratosa

Order: Dictyoceratida

Family: Thorectidae

Genus: Collospongia

FYI: When purchasing new specimens, they should be bagged under water, i.e., never lifted out of the water. Nor should any air or oxygen be added to the bag, as it may become trapped in the animal's tissue while being transported and lead to its early demise.

They are not too sensitive to temperature changes, yet sudden changes in salinity may have drastic effects.

New specimens should not contain any gray or white tissue, which is generally a sign of dying or dead tissue. However, it is possible to cut that section out, of course under water.

Experience Level: Intermediate

Diet: Photosynthetic (?)/Filter feeder

Aquarium Environment: Reef or fish-only aquarium

Coral Safe: With caution

Fish Safe: Yes

Invertebrate Safe: Yes

Acclimation Time: Sensitive to specific gravity/salinity changes, therefore be sure to adjust the bag's water to that of the aquarium in which it will be placed by slowly adding small amounts of aquarium water to the bag every few minutes. In most cases, this process should take at least 15 minutes.

Aquarium Hardiness: Challenging

Temperature Range: 72 - 83°F (22 - 28°C)

Minimum Tank Size: 50 gallons

Water Movement: WM 1 - 2

Specific Gravity: 1.023 - 1.025

pH: 8.0 - 8.4