Nutrition
Plakortis simplex
belongs to the phylum Porifera; therefore it
is a filter feeder (also known as a
suspension feeder). This means that it
feeds by filtering floating matter and food
particles from water, by passing the water
over a specialized filtering structure.
The food sources that are taken in are
primarily bacteria and other small
organisms. For
reproduction information on P. simplex click
here.
The water is circulated
through a large central canal known as the
atrium. This is accomplished by means
of the choanocytes which are single
flagellated cells which are believed to have
given rise to the sponges. Water moves
through the pores also known as ostia in the
walls of the sponge. Nutrients are
then taken in by different types of cells
such as amoebocytes which dispense the
nutrients throughout the rest of the body.