NATIONAL FISHERY CONGRESS. 
227 
records of the sponge-buyers. The figures represent the actual purchases of the 
local dealers, with the exception of the business of one buyer, the details of which 
have been estimated. 
Kinds. 
1895. 
1896. 
1897. 
Pounds. 
Value. 
Pounds. 
V alue. 
Pounds. Value. 
Sheepswool 
231, 272 
$363, 107 
149, 724 
$248, 196 
157, 476' $240, 599 
Yellow 
29, 509 
11, 798 
23, 655 
9,318 
32,362 13,082 
Grass 
21, 387 
5, 464 
44, 617 
11, 508 
128, 622 1 29, 188 
Glove 
14, 857 
2, 882 
15, 365 
2, 263 
9,292 1,301 
Others * 
9, 095 
3, 620 
2, 950 
1,727 
3,794 j 1,870 
Total 
306, 120 
386, 871 
234, 111 
273, 012 
331,546 284,640 
* Includes, besides velvet sponges, “■wire” sponges, “hardhead” sponges, and other 
miscellaneous grades having little value. 
THE SHEEPSWOOL SPONGE. 
The sheepswool is the best sponge found on the shores of the western Atlantic, 
and for most purposes has no superior anywhere. While the texture is coarser than 
that of the best Mediterranean sponges, this sponge is more durable — a quality of 
leading importance for most purposes. Belonging to the same species as the native 
sheepswool are the well-known eastern horse sponge, Venetian bath sponge, and 
Gfherbis sponge. 
The sheepswool sponge is taken on all the important spongiug-grounds on the 
Florida coast. Its distribution may be said to be from Apalachicola on the west coast 
to Cape Florida on the east coast, although between Charlotte Harbor and Key West 
but few known grounds exist. The most productive are in the vicinity of Anclote Keys 
and Rock Island, and from these regions the best quality of sheepswool sponges comes. 
Between Key West and Cape Florida valuable grounds also exist, those in the vicinity 
of Matecumbe Key, Knight Key, Bahia Honda, and Biscayne Bay being especially 
important. This species usually grows on the bare coralline rock which underlies a 
large part of Florida and is exposed over large areas of the contiguous bottom. On 
sandy or muddy bottom it is rarely found. It is at present taken in water from 10 to 
50 feet deep, but the largest quantities are obtained in depths of 20 to 35 feet. In the 
early days of the fishery, before the depletion of the grounds had begun, the principal 
part of the catch was from a depth of less than 12 feet. 
With the methods in use in Florida sponges can not be profitably gathered in 
water more than 50 feet deep, and a question of considerable interest and importance 
is whether sponges grow in noteworthy quantities at a greater depth. Most spongers 
think that there are important grounds now beyond their reach, but others think that 
50 or 60 feet is the maximum depth at which sponges grow. It is claimed by a few 
persons that beyond this depth the bottom is not adapted to the growth of sponges, 
the coralline rock being absent aud sand predominating. Definite information on this 
point is, however, lacking, and a careful survey would be required to settle the matter. 
The probabilities are that in certain localities there are productive grounds beyond 
the present limits of operation, as there is nothing in the nature of sponges to prevent 
their inhabiting deeper water, and it seems improbable that the rocky bottoms should 
cease to exist beyond 50 feet. 
Should future inquiry show the presence of sponge-grounds in water from 50 to 
80 feet deep, the discovery of a method of utilizing them would be the first considera- 
