Gold sponge
Aplysina aerophoba (Nardo, 1833)
Status not recordedsponges
The gold sponge (Aplysina aerophoba) is a sponge in the family Aplysinidae, order Verongiida. It belongs to the class Demospongiae within the phylum Porifera, and its scientific name carries the authority (Nardo, 1833).
Quick facts about the gold sponge
Other English names for it are aureate sponge and yellow tube sponge.
- Weight
- Not recorded
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- Not recorded
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- marinesrc for Habitat
- Young per litter or clutch
- Not recorded
- Conservation status
- Not recorded
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Photos of the gold sponge
Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.
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Where does the gold sponge live?
Not recorded
What is the gold sponge?
Aplysina aerophoba is a species of sponge in the family Aplysinidae. It is a yellow, tube-forming or encrusting sponge and is native to the eastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea; the type locality is the Adriatic Sea.
From the Wikipedia article “Aplysina aerophoba” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Aplysina_aerophoba&oldid=1355144712), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the gold sponge endangered?
No conservation assessment is recorded for this species in our sources. That is not the same as being safe: it has not been matched to an assessment.
How is the gold sponge classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumPorifera
- classDemospongiae
- orderVerongiida
- familyAplysinidae
- genusAplysina
- SpeciesAplysina aerophoba (Nardo, 1833)
Synonyms Aplysia aerophoba, Aplysina carnosa, Verongia aerophoba, Verongia aerophoba
Other names and names in other languages (18)
- Aureate spongeEnglish
- Yellow tube spongeEnglish
- aplisinaCatalan
- esponja d'orCatalan
- houba komínováCzech
- GoldschwammGerman
- Farbwechselnder ZylinderschwammGerman
- goldener ZapfenschwammGerman
- esponja de tubo amarillaSpanish
- vérongiaFrench
- Aplysina des grottes superficiellesFrench
- Esponxa áureaGalician
- Promjenjiva sumporačaCroatian
- AranyszivacsHungarian
- verongiaItalian
- Verongia comuneItalian
- Gouden sponsDutch
- esponja amarelaPortuguese
Relatives of the gold sponge
Other species in the same genus Aplysina.
Stovepipe sponge
Aplysina archeri
Yellow cave sponge
Aplysina cavernicola
Candle sponge
Aplysina fistularis
Row pore rope sponge
Aplysina cauliformis
Scattered pore rope sponge
Aplysina fulva
Yellow tube sponge
Aplysina insularis
CompareGold sponge vs Stovepipe spongeGold sponge vs Yellow cave spongeGold sponge vs Candle spongeGold sponge vs Row pore rope sponge
Common questions
Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.
What kind of animal is the gold sponge?
The gold sponge is a sponge, an invertebrate in the phylum Porifera and the class Demospongiae.
What is the scientific name of the gold sponge?
The scientific name of the gold sponge is Aplysina aerophoba, in the genus Aplysina.
Who named the gold sponge and when?
The authority for Aplysina aerophoba is written as (Nardo, 1833).
What family does the gold sponge belong to?
The gold sponge belongs to the family Aplysinidae, in the order Verongiida.
What are other names for the gold sponge?
The gold sponge is also called the aureate sponge and the yellow tube sponge.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-13. How this page is put together.
- Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Gold sponge (Aplysina aerophoba). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/gold-sponge
“Gold sponge (Aplysina aerophoba).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/gold-sponge.
@misc{gold_sponge_2026,
title = {Gold sponge (Aplysina aerophoba)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/gold-sponge},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-13}
}