[2] When removed from water, this sponge turns blue, leading to its specific name "aerophoba" (Greek: "fear of air").

Another, dis-similar, dwarf yellow sponge has been found in the Mediterranean in the early 21st century; genetic analysis has confirmed that it is a miniature form of A.

[5] Aplysina aerophoba is chiefly a Mediterranean species, but is also found in adjacent parts of the Atlantic Ocean in Portugal and northwestern Spain.

[2] The dwarf form is known from a few locations in the Mediterranean Sea including Liguria, Provence and Corsica, and lives in caves and under overhangs in very shallow water.

It is a hermaphrodite; the gametes are released into the sea where fertilisation occurs, the larvae are planktonic and soon settle in a suitable location and undergo metamorphosis into juvenile sponges.