Description

This sponge is usually white but can also be grey, pale rose, orange or sulphur yellow in colour. Several new species have recently been described from the NE Atlantic and it is likely that different forms currently identified as Clathrina coriacea are in fact distinct species. Young colonies are often thinly encrusting but more mature ones form a soft, compact network of anastomosing thin walled tubes. This species may be confused with Leucosolenia botryoides and other Leucosolenia species which are also comprised of thin walled tubes, however in C. coriacea there are no erect free branches.