Sponges

= Sponges have been on earth since the Cambrian Period.[570-500 million years ago] Sea life was plentiful in this period. The top dogs in the world were trilobites, and land animals had not formed yet. During the next three periods,[Ordovician-Devonian Periods] sponges were very popular in all the major seas. Although they didn't have the power and agility of some of the fishes at that time, they had by far the biggest population of any species at that time. The Carboniferous Period brought out a new batch of animals, amphibians. These new creations soon took over the land with their big, heavy bodies. During the Permian, life in the sea and life on land was both plentiful. Although life was abundant in the early Permian Period, in the late Permian life seemed to hault. 96% of all known marine species died, along with almost all of the sponge family. Very few if any sponges were able to witness the new rulers of the Earth, the dinosaurs. The sponge family has got back on its feet today though, and now inhabits most modern-day seas. =