What were the first #animals? The fierce #sponge#jelly battle that just won’t end

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-026-00238-z

What were the first animals? The fierce sponge–jelly battle that just won’t end

For almost two decades, scientists have debated whether sponges or comb jellies are the first animal lineage. Now some are calling for a more harmonious approach.

A large sponge, a cluster of anemones, and other life is seen nearly 230 meters deep at an area of the seabed that was very recently covered by the George VI Ice Shelf in Antarctica. Sponges can grow very slowly, sometimes less than two centimeters a year, so the size of this specimen suggests this community has been active for decades, perhaps even hundreds of years.ROV SuBastian/Schmidt Ocean Institute

#photography
#MarineLife
#sponge
#anemones