Sponges attach to the ocean floor, continually filtering seawater for food and ejecting water they have just filtered to avoid reingesting it  Tubular and vase-shaped sponges can eject filtered water without assistance from surrounding ocean currents and thus are adapted to slow-moving, quiet waters  Because of their shape, however, these sponges cannot live in strong currents, since strong currents would dislodge them
Both of these varieties of sponge were widespread during the late Jurassic period
No types of sponge live in large colonies, since sponges do not flourish in areas where much of the water has been filtered by other sponges.