Please ID if possible

[Intricateart]

Im posting this here and in LPS, cause I just don't know. Its bigger than a soft ball by about half, and comes from the north end of the Florida Gulf barrier islands (clearwater, caladesi, honeymoon island area). Someone let me know what this is please.

 

[Steviereefs]

It looks like a sea sponge . That's a bit big :fish2:

 

[Intricateart]

Looking at it you would think so, but if its a sponge its the only on of its kind on record, as it is solid. We thought that too, but we are very familiar with sponges (we live near tarpon springs) and this is no sponge. It feels like montipora or closed zoas, hard yet slick. Its weird... I wanna know!!! Thank you though.

 

[Steviereefs]

Your welcome sorry I can't help ya. Does it show any signs of life any locomotion or Polyps ?

 

[Intricateart]

The pores expanded significantly and retract if a hermit crawls on him, but otherwise not much. Definitely alive though, so we'll keep an eye. It was a very good day at the beach! We found what I can only assume are giant sea squirts, we got about 100 porcelain crabs, a maroon non photosynthetic nem, a large hermit with symbiotic nems at both sides (we found several and they all had them, we just didn't keep them all) and the nems are purple with electric orange filaments they put out when angry (IE when I found out there was a nem on the crab I was holding) two gorgonians, two blue legged hermits... I think there was more, but I lost track.

 

[ZOAngel]

It may be a dead coral

 

[Intricateart]

Oh yeah the sea hare and what appears to be 2 scarlet cleaner shrimp!

 

[Intricateart]

Its definitely not dead, the pores expand and contract

 

[Steviereefs]

Pore coral !!!!!! I'm pretty sure

 

[Intricateart]

thats awesome!!! I think you are right.