Pumping Rate and Size of Demosponges—Towards an Understanding Using Modeling

Filter-feeding sponges pump large amounts of water and contribute significantly to grazing impact, matter transport nutrient cycling in many marine benthic communities. For ecological studies it is therefore interest be able estimate the pumping rate different species from their volume size or osculum cross-sectional area by means experimentally determined allometric correlations. To help understand data correlations observed variations volume-specific among we developed a model that determines as function (volume) tubular-type demosponge described 4 geometric length scales. The relies on choanocyte-pump standard pressure loss relations for flow through aquiferous system, density per choanocyte assumed constant. By selecting possibilities increase scales, which may also simulate growth forms, demonstrate can imitate experimental It concluded dependence primarily governed hydraulics performance losses system rather than, e.g., decreasing choanocytes with increasing sponge size.