Sponges and coral may seem similar, but they come from different animal phyla and have different body plans. Sponges lack true tissue and have flagella-lined pores, while corals are cnidarians with stinging tentacles and symbiotic algae. Both are ancient lineages, but recent genetic studies suggest coral’s ancestors split off earlier.
Superficially, sponges and coral have a lot in common. Both just sit underwater, filtering out food particles, living in large colonies that provide habitats for other animals. Divers know that they come in many beautiful colors. But underneath the surface, these two organisms are completely different.
Sponges and corals come from different animal phyla, for example. Phyla is the most basic of all animal distinctions and refers to animals with completely different body plans. Sponges are among the simplest animals, lacking true tissue, and deter predators primarily by their lack of nourishment and the glass-like fragments found in their bodies called spicules. They are covered with small pores lined with cells equipped with flagella, which serve both to circulate water through the sponge and to absorb food particles. Sponges are capable of living anywhere in the ocean, from just off the coast to 8,500 m (29,000 ft) deep or more. Sponges are members of the phylum Porifera and their alternative name is “porifera”.
Corals are cnidarians, related to jellyfish and anemones. More complex than sponges, they have differentiated tissue and a true intestine. Corals look like single individuals, but are actually huge colonies made up of numerous genetically identical polyps a few millimeters in diameter. These polyps have stinging tentacles, characteristic of cnidarians. Instead of depending on food particles for food, corals get most of their nutrition from symbiotic algae, which give them their color. Corals cannot live as deep as sponges, most are found in the photic zone, where light can reach their algae, but some species are found as deep as 3000m (9,842ft).
Sponges and coral are both members of very ancient lineages that probably split from other animals as early as 600 million years ago. For a long time sponges were thought to be the more basic of sponges and coral, but recent genetic studies have indicated that coral’s ancestors, the early cnidarians, actually split off from other animals earlier, and that sponges are probably lineage that was secondly simplified.
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