Sponge Zoanthid
Sponge Zoanthid on Branching Vase Sponge
| Name: | Sponge Zoanthid |
| Scientific Name: | Parazoanthus parasiticus |
| Family: | Zoanthids |
| Taxonomic: | Parazoanthidae |
| ID Group: | Anemones, Hydroids, Jellyfish |
| Size: | up to 0.25 in. |
| Depth Range: | On the reef (10 – 60 ft.) |
| Sightings: | Seen many times |
This Zoanthid has small polyps with a white column and two rows of short brown or yellow-brown tentacles. They have a darker central disc and often grow in large groups, covering the surface of sponges.
The Sponge Zoanthid only lives on certain sponges, mostly on the Branching Vase Sponge and the Red Boring Sponge. Typically, a single larva settles and then spreads across its sponge host by budding, forming large, genetically identical colonies on one sponge.