Lessons from the Past: Sponges and the Geological Record

MUIR, LUCY; BOTTING, JOSEPH; BERESI, MATILDE S

Climate Change, Ocean Acidification and Sponges

Springer International Publishing

Lugar: London-Heidelberg; Año: 2017; p. 13 - 47

DEL LIBRO: While sponges represent a very simple group of organisms, which are represented by over 8000 species, there is considerable interest in the increasing role they may play in future marine ecosystems. While we still have a comparatively limited understanding of how sponges will respond to ocean warming and acidification there is evidence that some species may have the ability to acclimate or even adapt to these stressors. This comprehensive collection of articles describes our current understanding of the impacts of ocean acidification and warming on sponges across multiple levels of biological organisation, and from the geological past to the present. With expert contributions from across the world, this book represents the most up-to-date view on sponge responses to climate change. This book will be of interest to a wide audience of marine scientists and managers, who are grappling with how to manage, conserve and protect marine ecosystems. Abstract CHAPTER 2: Sponges have been a major part of marine ecosystems, in both shallow and deep water, from the time of the earliest animal communities. The great shifts in climate that have occurred over the past 541 million years have affected all organisms, including sponges. Although patchy knowledge of the sponge fossil record hinders recognition of trends, some general patterns are apparent. Shallow-water siliceous sponges were severely affected by glacial intervals, whereas deeper-water siliceous sponges appear to have flourished during these times. Some groups of hypercalcified sponges (such as stromatoporoids) were abundant during times of global warming and high sea level, but other groups (archaeocyathans and sphinctozoans)had their acme during times of low sea level and relatively cool climate. Overall, sponge diversity appears to have been controlled more by sea level than by climate: large-scale sponge biotas occurred at times of high sea level when there were large areas of a shallow sea.