 In 2008 a University of Stuttgart team reported that spicules made of silica conduct light into the mesohyl, where the photosynthesizing endosymbionts live.Sponges that host photosynthesizing organisms are most common in waters with relatively poor supplies of food particles, and often have leafy shapes that maximize the amount of sunlight they collect.A recently discovered carnivorous sponge that lives near hydrothermal vents hosts methane-eating bacteria, and digests some of them.