Ecology Summary - Petrosia ficiformis

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Ecology of Petrosia ficiformis

Main Ref.	Göthel, H., 1992
Remarks	Habitat: Various rock funds, caves and cracks, generally beyond 5 m and until the great depths. Biology: coloring is related to the presence of symbiotic algae: the non exposed fabrics and the individuals living inside underwater excavations are clear, which is explained by the absence or the scarcity of these chlorophyllian algae. In all the other cases, these spongiae is of darker color. The dory Peltodoris atromaculata almost exclusively nourishes fabrics of this species, whose each colony is frequently the prey of many specimens. As for sponges while not comprising, it is not rare to detect these traces of bites in the form of prints faded in the extreme cases; only one Petrosia sp. can be the prey of 40 mackled dory of all sizes (Ref. 358).

Main Ref.

Göthel, H., 1992

Remarks

Habitat: Various rock funds, caves and cracks, generally beyond 5 m and until the great depths. Biology: coloring is related to the presence of symbiotic algae: the non exposed fabrics and the individuals living inside underwater excavations are clear, which is explained by the absence or the scarcity of these chlorophyllian algae. In all the other cases, these spongiae is of darker color. The dory Peltodoris atromaculata almost exclusively nourishes fabrics of this species, whose each colony is frequently the prey of many specimens. As for sponges while not comprising, it is not rare to detect these traces of bites in the form of prints faded in the extreme cases; only one Petrosia sp. can be the prey of 40 mackled dory of all sizes (Ref. 358).

Aquatic zones / Water bodies

	Marine - Neritic	Marine - Oceanic	Brackishwater	Freshwater
Marine zones / Brackish and freshwater bodies	supra-littoral zone littoral zone sublittoral zone	epipelagic mesopelagic epipelagic abyssopelagic hadopelagic	estuaries/lagoons/brackish seas mangroves marshes/swamps	rivers/streams lakes/ponds caves exclusively in caves

Highighted items on the list are where Petrosia ficiformis may be found.

Habitat

Substrate	: sessile; Hard Bottom: rocky;
Substrate Ref.
Special habitats
Special habitats Ref.

Associations

Ref.	Göthel, H., 1992
Associations
Associated with
Association remarks
Parasitism

feeding

Feeding type	mainly plants/detritus (troph. 2-2.19)
Feeding type Ref.	Ruppert, E.E., R.S. Fox and R.D. Barnes, 2004
Feeding habit	filtering plankton
Feeding habit Ref.	Ruppert, E.E., R.S. Fox and R.D. Barnes, 2004

Trophic Level(s)

Estimation method	original sample		unfished population		Remark
Estimation method	Troph	s.e.	Troph	s.e.	Remark
From diet composition
From individual food items
Ref.

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