They are capable of facultative swimming, which means they will swim when there is an emergency. Yes, that is right-these deep-sea holothurians can swim. ![]() Deep-sea holothurian observed during an ROV dive at Rodda Canyon. This is because they have higher proportions of gelatinous tissue than collagens, keeping them neutrally buoyant in the ocean and allowing them to swim faster. Their internal organs are displayed like presents behind a Christmas shopping window-you just can’t shift your eyes away. Their body walls can be translucent or even transparent, one of the most distinctive characteristics among deep-sea holothurian communities. Holothurians usually have many morphological variations (spiky or smooth textures, dotted or mottled patterns, elongated or spherical body shapes). Klaus StiefelĪfter seeing these sea cucumbers at depth with our own eyes, they seem a lot prettier than their shallower cousins. Sea cucumber poop is (surprisingly?) good for the marine ecosystem. Only with the technological advancement of submersibles (occupied submersibles like DSV-2 Alvin or the Shinkai 2000, or Remotely Operated Vehicles like SuBastian ) in the past 20-30 years has it become possible for us to observe and record in-situ appearance and behaviour of bathyal and abyssal holothurians. Deep-sea cucumber taxa have been documented since the 19th century, and samples are mainly collected by trawling blindly or as bycatch during fishing. Yet, the deep-sea holothurian community remains very mysterious. In other words, they make the nutrients buried in the sediments available again to other organisms. Sea cucumbers eat detritus particles and excrete clean sand-a process called bioturbation or the reworking and reconstructing sediments by animals. They are also essential to the marine ecosystem. ![]() They can breathe oxygen from water drawn through their anus. Joan Liįalkor’s ROV team may have a different perspective on this topic, though, and I think they are one of the most fascinating marine animals you could possibly encounter! Sea cucumbers are undoubtedly strong candidates in the marine beauty contest (if there are any).ĭivers and scientists might be familiar with the following facts: they shoot their guts (some eject their viscera, while others shoot some very sticky organs called Cuvierian tubules) to deter predators, and they sometimes let fish (pearlfish) live in their anus. Can you find the sea cucumbers in 3 seconds? Joan Li Probably not, but computers can do it in milliseconds! There is definitely a lot of space for improvement but people are working on it. So for my Masters’s project at James Cook University, I am using an algorithm to automate the sea cucumber detection process on computers against drone-collected images. ![]() They often have dull but well-camouflaged colouration and shapes that resemble other reef animals and plant life. While snorkelers and divers often see sea cucumbers on reefs, when it comes to using modern image techniques to locate them – such as low-flying aerial drones over sandy lagoons – they can be challenging to find. ![]() Although sea cucumbers are considered a delicacy in some countries, as someone who has tried eating them, I have to say they are the most plain-tasting seafood I have ever had. Sea cucumbers, also known as holothurians, are the worm-like, elongated echinoderms found lying dormant or crawling slowly on the seafloor. Someone once said, “You cannot possibly design a less-interesting animal than a sea cucumber.” To some extent, this is correct.
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