FISHERY RESOUKCES OP THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 59 



THE PHILIPPINE ROCK SPONGE (PLATE IV ) . 



ISTo commercial name exists for this organism. It resembles the Flor- 

 ida yellow sponge to a certain extent, but the fiber is not as strong and 

 the texture is considerably softer. It is very porous and covered with 

 small tufts. It grows attached to bowlders and rocks in water of 1.5 to 

 5 meters in depth, reaching a diameter of 40 centimeters. Some of the 

 dealers Vhom I consulted designated this as a good sponge; others con- 

 sidered it to be almost worthless. As a matter of fact it is not very 

 durable and therefore would probably not bring a large price. It is 

 only known from the Island of Sitanki, but it probably will be found 

 throughout the Sulu group. 



THE PHILIPPINE REEF SPONGE (PLATE V). 



This is a beautiful sponge of very soft, closely woven fiber; un- 

 fortunately it is quite fragile. This fact greatly detracts from its value ; 

 however, it is of a slightly better quality than the majority of American 

 reef sponges. This specimen was termed "glove sponge" by some of 

 the wholesale dealers of New York, but reef sponge is undoubtedly 

 a better name. It is quite abundant in many places in the southern 

 Philippine Islands, especially so at Sitanki, M'here it is found in very 

 shallow water, usually growing on the reefs among the moss and seaweed. 

 i: reaches a diameter of 20 to 25 centimeters. It is a fine, soft, bath 

 sponge, but because of its fragile nature its . period of usefulness is 

 short. Considering its abundance, cheapness, and the ease with which 

 it is gathered, the probabilities are that it will play an important part 

 in the Philippine sponge industry. 



The prices quoted on this sponge ranged from 2 to 3 pesos per kilo. 



PHILIPPINE GRASS SPONGES (PLATE VI ). 



The group of grass sponges which embraces a variety of forms re- 

 presenting distinct genera, contains the great majority of sponges found 

 in almost all Philippine waters ; they are especially abundant at Sitanki, 

 Tawi-Tawi and Siasi to the south, and at Masbate and Cebu farther to 

 the north. In these places the)' outnumber all the other sponges com- 

 bined. They are usually encountered on reefs, in water of from 40 

 centimeters to 1.5 meters in depth. They are from 8 to 30 centimeters 

 in diameter. 



The best grade of Philippine grass sponge (shown by PI. VI) is of 

 a closely woven, fine, and soft texture; it is in every respect most desir- 

 able for bathing or general use. More than thirty thousand of these 

 sponges were taken from the beds at Sitanlci during the past year, but 

 many were of very small size and also poorly cleaned, so that the price 

 obtained was very low. Wholesale dealers gave the value of my specimen 



