One of the larger and more visible sponge colonies at Kwajalein is Niphates olemda. This gray to bluish soft sponge commonly forms clusters of tubes on lagoon and pinnacle reefs, although it can occasionally be found on the seaward reef as well. Most books or websites figure this in the genus Cribrochalina or the apparently misspelled Cribochalina, but the World Register of Marine Species (WORMS) now places it in Niphates.
Created 1 June 2019