I was intrigued by the Shredded Carrot Sponge as I hadn’t heard of it before.  I learned so much about it! The Shredded Carrot sponge is found all along the Firth of Forth.  It is usually found attached to rocks, bright reddish-orange in colour (hence its name!), soft and elastic and extremely fast growing.  Individual sponges can change shape within a few weeks into short, stubby forms, or thin sheets, cushions or creeping branches.  I used linen and recycled cotton and chose the branching type as I hoped it would be the easiest to weave!   Carrot sponges range in size from 2cm to 15cm and can be found as far down as 50 metres.  It is a filter feeder, taking water into its body and filtering out bacteria through small pores which cover its entire surface.   It has few predators because of its toxicity and nasty taste, so it can provide shelter for larvae and small marine species. Sponges are one of the oldest and simplest forms of life, appearing on life about 640 million years ago.  They are ecologically important, especially to water quality as they filter water, collect bacteria and process carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus.  There is current research into how well sponges can absorb contaminates and pollutants in marine sediment and help protect the coastline.