Site description and sponge collection
Prior to collection, four fringing reef communities were evaluated for the collection of sponge specimens and sediments in Puerto Rico. All collection sites were selected on the West and Southwest coasts of Puerto Rico due to the diversity of sponge species and ease of access to the reef. In order to compare the culturable actinomycete community of sedimented and pristine coral reef habitats, 9 to 12 sponge species were collected at four sites with a sediment sample representative of each site (Table 1). This was done to determine if there was a selection of actinomycetes within the sponge‟s micro biota with the possibility of sponge-specific actinomycete associations. Repeated collections of the same species were performed at the four localities to determine whether the actinomycete community was influenced by the environmental aspects of each site or by the unique microbial community among the specimens.