Sponges boom thanks to Antarctic ice shelf bust
Previously thought to grow at a slow pace, the sea creatures exploded in number
![](https://i0.wp.com/www.sciencenews.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/js_Glass-sponge-feather-stars.jpg?fit=860%2C460&ssl=1)
Glass sponges provide habitat for feather and brittle stars in frigid Antarctic waters. The creatures (shown here in the western Weddell Sea) made a surprising emergence following the collapse of the Larsen A ice shelf.
Thomas Lundalv, Alfred Wegener Institute