Pink/Orange Spots on Octospawn Skeleton

[CRABDADDY]

I just purchased this Octospawn and found these odd spots on it's skeleton. You can't see the color very well under the blue light, but they're orange/pink in color. They didn't come off with the coral dip. One of them does seem to be falling off now. Any ideas what this is? Should I scrape them off?

 

[messytank]

Probably sponges, if you want to remove them, scrape them off outside the tank as they can release toxins. Rinse with clean saltwater after.

 

[CRABDADDY]

Are they harmful in any way? I haven't had any experience with sponges. Should I throw a bag of carbon into my media basket in case they released toxins?

 

[messytank]

Sponges if damaged can release stuff into the water column which harms corals, etc. They also compete for resources. Some people like em, some don't. Really up to you. There's a good article on reef builders you can look up about sponges.

 

[king aiptasia]

Are they harmful in any way? I haven't had any experience with sponges. Should I throw a bag of carbon into my media basket in case they released toxins?

i would just leave them personally, ive never heard of tiny amounts of sponges nuking an entire tank, heck, the ones that hitchhike if they die usually means the tank was already crashed