Venus' flower basket (Euplectella aspergillum) is a species of marine glass sponge found in the deep waters of the Pacific Ocean, usually at depths below 500 m (1,600 ft).

[4] This sponge's habitat is on the rocky areas of the benthic seafloor, where it lives and grows connected to hard substrate for its entire life.

Connecting habitat to morphology, this sponge can often be found inhabiting loose, muddy sediments, causing them to develop a structure that would aid them in staying rooted to the sea floor.

[7] In a study performed by a group of Italian researchers, a three-dimensional model of Venus' Flower Basket was utilized to simulate the flow of water molecules in and out of its lattice.

Sperm was found in one sample of E. aspergillum, within the connective tissue, and was described as aggregated clusters within very fine, thread-like appendages.

In a study done with various glass sponges, Venus' Flower Basket was noted to be difficult to extract any further information because of how inaccessible it serves to be.

However, when in contact with alkali, these sponges showed a high resistance, which then led researchers to believe that they potentially contain biomaterials like chitin, that could serve as a structural component to this species.

This study suggests that as long as E. aspergillum and similar species are natural composites containing valuable biomaterials, they could be important in biomedicine and future biotechnology.

[2][16] The sponge extracts silicic acid from seawater and converts it into silica, then forms it into an elaborate skeleton of glass fibers.

[6][17] These sponges skeletons have complex geometric configurations, which have been extensively studied for their stiffness, yield strength, and minimal crack propagation.

[18] Besides these remarkable structural properties, Falcucci et al. found that their peculiar skeletal motifs deliver important fluid-dynamic effects on both reducing the drag experienced by the sponge and in promoting coherent swirling motions inside the body cavity, arguably to promote selective filter feeding and sexual reproduction.