Sponges

I never knew that sea sponges grew in great quantity off from the far Eastern coast of Staten Island. I would have never guessed. I discovered them on one of my latest treks around the coast that surrounds New York City. I have to say that it is a tough one for me. I can find hope, beauty and inspiration almost anywhere, but the waters off New York city kinda make my heart sink. We all know that the area isn't exactly known for it's picturesque waters, but I continue on in search of something different, something special even there.

The sea sponges were a pleasant surprise. Two specimens now sit upon my windowsill mini-lab. I have rinsed them and seemingly re awoken their "sea scent." So now they sit in the open window to dry. The sent is a wonderful one. I was happy to find that the passing hurricane threw so many onto the beach for me to look at. The fresh sponges were bright rust orange. I wrestled an older sponge out of the wet sand and brought it home to look at. The rest I happily tossed back into the bobbing sea watching the copper float in the dark brown sea.

I found this link
http://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/edu/k12/snapshotday/activities/oysterorganismguide.pdf

that explains some of the creatures that can survive in even the highly polluted NY/NJ area.