The ocean is full of surprises, and scientists are still finding creatures that seem almost unreal. From tiny reef animals to ...

A rare chemical indicator suggests sponges may have arrived as the first animals on Earth. A sterol core is primarily composed of four fused carbon rings, along with carbon side chains and other ...

Studies looking at how sponges have evolved on a molecular level have suggested that spicules should be present over 700 ...

A team of scientists digging up some of the Earth’s oldest rocks has uncovered new chemical evidence that Earth’s first animals were likely ancestors of the modern sea sponge. The discovery relies on ...

Wild dolphins use sea sponges as tools to hunt safely, revealing how animal culture survives despite hidden sensory costs.

Long before dinosaurs, trilobites, or even jellyfish swam the seas, Earth’s oceans were filled with creatures that looked like squishy tubes or blobs. They had no bones, no shells, and no nervous ...

The missing link in the mystery turned out to be an event called the Cambrian explosion. It was only after it that living ...

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Biological systems are renowned for their ability to create strong yet resilient structures. A sea sponge, for instance, grows in layers, forming unique patterns that integrate minerals with softer ...

SpongeBob SquarePants and his starfish best friend, Patrick Star, aren’t such cartoonish creatures after all. According to an image taken by a marine biologist doing remote deep-sea exploration this ...