Aplidium stellatum
Sea Pork is a colony of hundreds to thousands of animals. They are marine invertebrates called zooids (pron. zo-oid). These animals excrete a cellulose substance which forms a sheath that functions as a gelatinous exoskeleton. Look closely: the zooids appear as reddish little round circles or pores covering the surface of the globular structure.
The individual animals are filter feeders. They have intake and outflow siphons which bring in nutrients and oxygen and expel waste. Sea Pork reproduces by releasing larvae resembling miniature tadpoles. The individual animals gather as a group to create their gelatinous sheath and to attach themselves to a rock or other hard surface. The new colony can grow to more than a foot in size and weigh up to ten pounds.
Sea Pork gets its name from dead colonies that wash up on the beach, resembling a slab of pork meat. Sea pork colonies are preyed upon by sharks, rays and skates.
Live shells should never be taken from any Florida State Park.