Independent origins of spicules reconcile paleontological and molecular evidence of sponge evolutionary history
Sponges (Porifera) are ecosystem engineers that play a critical role in global biogeochemical processes. Their evolution is key to understanding Neoproterozoic paleoecology but remains mired in controversy. Molecular timescales suggest a Tonian or Cryogenian origin, while their oldest unequivocal fossils consist of disarticulated siliceous spicules from the Late Ediacaran. We derived a new, dated sponge phylogeny and tested whether ancestral sponges had mineralized skeletons. We resolve the sponge phylogeny in good agreement with current knowledge and date their origin to the early Ediacaran. Our results suggest that early sponges were not biomineralized and that both biosilicification and biocalcification evolved independently multiple times across Porifera. We reconcile fossil evidence and molecular estimates of sponge evolution by showing that the Neoproterozoic history of Porifera is limited to the Ediacaran and providing evidence suggesting that sponges are largely absent from the Ediacaran record because they were yet to evolve biomineralized skeletons.
Authors
- Joseph N. Keating (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2667-7795)
- Nathan J. Kenny (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4816-4103)
- Davide Pisani (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0949-6682)
- Maria Eleonora Rossi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4076-5601)
- Mattia Giacomelli (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0554-3704)
- Sandra Álvarez-Carretero (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9508-6286)
- Vasiliki Koutsouveli (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9117-0598)
- Ana Farrar Riesgo
- Astrid Schuster
- Paco Cárdenas (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4045-6718)
- Sergi Taboada
- Philip C. J. Donoghue
Institutions
- Universidad Complutense de Madrid (ES)
- Uppsala University (SE)
- Natural History Museum (GB)
- University of Southern Denmark (DK)
- Ollscoil na Gaillimhe – University of Galway (IE)
- Universidad de Alcalá (ES)
- GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel (DE)
- University of Bristol (GB)
- Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (ES)
- Universitat de Barcelona (ES)
- University of Otago (NZ)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Science Advances
- Published
- 2026-01-07
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adx1754
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Marine Sponges and Natural Products
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 27.96
Funders
- Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
- Leverhulme Trust
- University of Bristol
- Uppsala Universitet