Twenty species of sea cucumbers from India are described briefly, with photographs which will enable research workers and farmers to identify them

James, D.B.

English

Twenty species of sea cucumbers from India are described briefly, with photographs which will enable

research workers and farmers to identify them

James, D B

CMFRI Digital Repository

4 Naga, The ICLARM Quarterly (Vol. 24, Nos. 1 & 2) January-June 2001Cymodocea beds. It spends part ofthe day buried in sand. It can befound in the intertidal region to adepth of 10 m. Younger forms aredistributed near the shore and as theygrow they migrate to deeper watersfor breeding. This is the most widelyused species after A. Japonicus andalso the most valuable species forprocessing. It is gregarious in natureand is therefore easily exploited.The seed of this species wasproduced for the first time in Indiain 1988. Deeper water forms areknown as Holothuria scabra var.versicolor. They  can grow to alength of 450 mm and their color canrange from beige to a uniform black.They can be found in the seas aroundIndia from the Andaman andNicobar Islands and in the Gulf ofMannar and Palk Bay. The deepwater form is also known to occurin the Lakshadweep.Twenty Sea Cucumbersfrom Seas Around IndiaD.B. JamesIntroductionSea cucumbers are a fascinatinggroup of marine animals. They livechiefly among corals but are alsofound among rocks and in muddy andsandy flats. They are distributed fromthe shore to the greatest depths. Theirlengths range from a few millimetersto more than 2 m and they occur inall color combinations: white, black,red, blue, green, yellow, violet etc.Some of them are really verybeautiful while alive and are in greatdemand for aquaria. The Chinese,Japanese and Koreans consider thema delicacy. The Chinese consumethem in processed form while theJapanese and the Koreans consumeApostichopus japonicus, fresh. Thetoxins of sea cucumbers haveantiviral, antitumoral, anticancerousand antifertility properties and finduse in the pharmaceutical industry.Some species like Pseudocnusechinatus are fed to ducks in China.At present nearly 1 400 speciesof sea cucumbers are known from allthe seas in the world. Of these only15 species are used for processing atpresent. There are nearly 200 knownspecies in the seas around India, mostof them in deep waters. About 75species have been shown to bepresent in shallow waters whilenearly 50 species can be collectedfrom the intertidal region.There are very few publicationswith color photographs of seacucumbers. The South PacificCommission (Anon 1974, 1979,1994) has produced threepublications on the processingindustry of Tropical Pacific seacucumbers with color photographs.Rowe and Boty (1997) have takencolor photographs of sea cucumbersfrom Guam. James and James (1994)brought out a handbook on Indian seacucumbers with color photographs ofthe commercially important species.The recent publication of Gosliner etal. (1996) on coral reef animals of theIndo-Pacific has excellent colorphotographs taken in situ and is ofgreat help in identifying the species.The 20 species are described belowin the order of importance forprocessing. Some non-commercialsea cucumbers are also included inthis report.Holothuria scabra(Jaeger)Popularly known as Sandfish,this sea cucumber can grow to alength of 400 mm and reach a weightof 1.5 kg. The upper side is grey incolor with white or yellowhorizontal bands. The lower side iswhite in color with fine black dots.It is found in silty sand, often nearlow saline areas and frequently onFig. 1. Holothuria scabra (Jaeger).AbstractTwenty species of sea cucumbers from India are described briefly, with photographs which will enableresearch workers and farmers to identify them.5Naga, The ICLARM Quarterly (Vol. 24, Nos. 1 & 2) January-June 2001Holothuria fuscogilva(Cherbonnier)Popularly known as WhiteTeatfish, this sea cucumber canreach a length of 400 mm and weighbetween 2 to 3 kg. Six to eight teat-like structures are present on eachside of the body. These are clearlyseen only in live specimens in water.The body color is brown and it isoften covered with a fine coat ofsand. It occurs in slightly deeperwaters and is common on  coral slabsnear reef passages or at the foot ofreef slopes. This is a high valuespecies for processing. It is commonto the seas around India from theLakshadweep. Recently it has beenrecorded in the Gulf of Mannar.Holothuria nobilis(Selenka)This sea cucumber is commonlyknown as Black Teatfish. Its bodyis loaf-shaped and its maximumlength and weight is similar to theprevious species. Six to eight teat-like projections are seen on each sideof the body in live specimens. Thebody is covered with a fine coat ofcoral sand, and is cream colored withblack blotches. This species is foundin shallow waters in lagoons. It ismore commonly found on shallowreef bottoms that are not subject toterrigenous influence. Juveniles maybe found on turtle-grass beds. Thisspecies is valuable for processing.In the seas around India it is foundonly in the Andamans andLakshadweep.Thelenota ananas(Jaeger)Commonly known as PricklyRedfish, this species of seacucumber can grow to a massivesize and reach a length of 700 mm.Live weight varies from 3 to 6 kg.It is very distinctive in appearancewith large pointed ‘teats’ in groupsof two or three all over the bodysurface. There are numerous largetube feet on the flat underside. Thebody is reddish orange with ‘teats’darker than the rest of the bodysurface. The tube feet on theunderside are bright orange.However the specimens from theLakshadweep are brown on theupper side and bright orange on thelower side. They feed exclusivelyon the calcareous alga Halmeda sp.and are found in lagoons at depthsof up to 30 m on clean sandybottoms or on slabs near large coralheads. It is a medium-value speciesfor processing. In the seas aroundIndia it is known to occur only inthe Lakshadweep.Holothuria spinifera(Theel)Commonly known as BrownSandfish, its length can reach 300mm. The color of the upper surfaceis a uniform brown, and there aresmall sharp projections all over thebody. The lower side is generallylighter in color. This species is neverfound in the intertidal region. It isfound on clean sand in slightlydeeper waters. It is a highlyburrowing form and is usually foundin night trawl catches. This specieswhich was once considered veryvaluable is now of  medium valuefor processing. In the seas aroundIndia it is found only in the Gulf ofMannar and the Palk Bay.      Actinopyga miliaris(Quoy and Gaimard)Commonly known as Blackfish,this species of sea cucumber canreach a maximum length of 300 mm.Its live weight ranges from 0.5 to 2kg. The body is cylindrical, with theupper side arched and the lower sideflat. Its color is uniformly black.Fig. 2. Holothuria fuscogilva (Cherbonnier).Fig. 3. Holothuria nobilis (Selenka).Fig. 4. Thelenota ananas (Jaeger).Fig. 6. Actinopyga miliaris(Quoy and Gaimard).featureFig. 5. Holothuria spinifera (Theel).6 Naga, The ICLARM Quarterly (Vol. 24, Nos. 1 & 2) January-June 2001This species lives gregariously likeH. scabra and is therefore easilyexploited. It is distributed in shallowwaters up to a depth of 10 m. It is amedium-value species forprocessing. It has been processedfrom the Gulf of Mannar only since1991. In the seas around India it isfound in the Gulf of Mannar, theAndamans and the Lakshadweep.Actinopyga echinites(Jaeger)Commonly known as Deep WaterRedfish, this sea cucumber speciescan grow  to a length of 300  mm andreach a maximum weight of 2 kg. Thebody is wider in the middle and tapersat both ends. The upper surface iswrinkled, often with fine sand settledover it. The color is uniformly brown.It attaches itself to rocks with its tubefeet. It occurs at depths of between 3to 7 m. It is a medium value speciesfor processing.  Processing firstbegan in the Gulf of Mannar around1990. In the seas around India it isdistributed in the Gulf of Mannar, theAndamans and the Lakshadweep.Actinopyga mauritiana(Quoy and Gaimard)Commonly known as SurfRedfish, the body of this species ofsea cucumber is arched on the upperside and flat on the lower side. It cangrow to a length of 250 mm and itslive weight can reach about 1 kg.The color of live specimens isbrick red on the upper side and whiteon the lower side. It is usually foundwhere the surf breaks on the reefs,firmly attached to coral stones. It is amedium-value species for processing.In the seas around India it is found inthe Andamans and the Lakshadweep.Recently a single specimen wascollected from the Gulf of Mannar.Bohadschia marmorata(Jaeger)Commonly known as Chalkyfish,this sea cucumber species has a shortand thick body with the lower sideslightly flattened. It  can reach alength of 400 mm and live weight ofbetween 1 to 2 kg. It is distributedbetween the intertidal region and adepth of 10 m. It occurs in coarse coralsand at depths between 2 and 6 m. Itis also found in the intertidal regionwith a fine layer of mud which peelsoff easily. It is a burrowing form andcomes out of the mud during cloudydays and at night. White stickythreads are abundant, which makesprocessing a bit difficult. It is a lowvalue species for processing. In theseas around India it is found in theGulf of Mannar, the Andamans andthe Lakshadweep.Bohadschia sp.This species was recentlycollected from the lagoon of KavatattiIsland in the Lakshadweep. It isdistributed in the lagoon at a depthof 2-3 m and is a rare sea cucumber.The body wall is thick and leathery.During collection white stickythreads are ejected by the animal. Thebody is cream colored withcharacteristic brown patches. Ofvalue for processing, this is a newspecies. A detailed description will bepublished elsewhere.Stichopus varigatus(Semper)Popularly known as Curryfish, inadults the body is four-sided andloaf-shaped. It can reach a length of900 mm. Larger forms occur indeeper waters. In younger forms thetubercles are more prominent. Theyoccur on algal beds and on cleansandy bottoms. Alive they are darkFig. 7. Actinopyga echinites (Jaeger).Fig. 9. Bohadschia marmorata (Jaeger).Fig. 10. Bohadschia sp.Fig. 11. Stichopus varigatus (Semper).Fig. 8. Actinopyga mauritiana(Quoy and Gaimard) .7Naga, The ICLARM Quarterly (Vol. 24, Nos. 1 & 2) January-June 2001and often two or three specimens arefound under coral stones. In somespecimens a Carapid fish is knownto live at the base of the respiratorytree. At present it is not used forprocessing. In the seas around Indiait is found in the Gulf of Mannar, theAndamans and the Lakshadweep.Holothuria impatiens(Forskal)In this species the body is bottle-shaped with a long neck and roughsurface, sandy to touch. It is coveredwith conical warts from whichfilamentous appendages emerge. Itis a secretive form found under deadcoral stones. Often two or threespecimens are found under the samecoral stone. On disturbing the animalwhite sticky threads are ejected. Itis an active sea cucumber. It is lightbrown in color with 4-5 dark browntransverse bands on the upper sidenear the anterior end. At present itis not used for processing. In the seasaround India it is found in the Gulfof Mannar, the Andamans and theLakshadweep.yellow with irregular brown patches.This species is of low value forprocessing. A pea crab is known tolive in the cloacal chamber. In theseas around India it is found in theGulf of Mannar, the Andamans andthe Lakshadweep.Holothuria atra (Jaeger)Commonly known as Lollyfish,this species reaches a length of 600 mm.When live specimens are handled ared fluid stains the hand. Sometimesthis species is covered with a finecoating of sand. It lies out in the openand occurs on the dead coral reefflats. It prefers to live in areas whichare abundant in the calcareous algaHalmeda sp., on which it feeds. Itscolor is uniformly black. It is a verylow value species for processing andis the most widely distributed. In theseas around India it is found in theGulf of Mannar and Palk Bay, theAndamans and the Lakshadweep.Holothuria edulis(Lesson)Popularly known as Pinkfish,this species has an elongated body,narrow at the anterior and blunt atthe posterior. It is never found in theintertidal region in India. It is usuallybright pink in color with varyingdegrees of black. The black color iswell marked on the upper side only,while the lower side is uniformlypink in color. It is a low-valuespecies for processing. In the seasaround India it is found only in theGulf of Mannar and the Andamans.Holothuria leucospilota(Brandt)This species has a long andsnake-like body. It has a peculiarhabit of sticking its posterior endunder a stone. The anterior endprojects out from the stone andkeeps on moving with the ventrallydirected tentacles. On beingdisturbed the animal throws outwhite sticky threads. Like H. atra itis uniformly black in color. Howeveron handling no red color stains thehand and no sand sticks to the bodysurface.  At present it is of nocommercial value. In the seasaround India it is found in the Gulfof Mannar and Palk Bay, theAndamans and the Lakshadweep.Holothuria hilla (Lesson)This species has a body which islong and cylindrical with blunt ends.It reaches a length of 200 mm. Thebody wall is soft with the upper andlower sides well demarcated, lightbrown in color with scattered whiteconical papillae. It is a fugitive formFig. 13. Holothuria edulis (Lesson).Fig. 15. Holothuria hilla (Lesson).Fig. 12. Holothuria atra (Jaeger).Fig. 14. Holothuria leucospilota (Brandt).Fig. 16. Holothuria impatiens (Forskal).feature8 Naga, The ICLARM Quarterly (Vol. 24, Nos. 1 & 2) January-June 2001Holothuria arenicola(Semper)The body of this species of seacucumber is slender and vermiform.It reaches a length of 200 mm. It is ahighly burrowing form. Often it isdifficult to collect this species since itquickly burrows out of reach into thesand. Sometimes a fish is known tolive inside the body of this species.Generally the color of the body iswhite. The upper side has reddishbrown spots or dots of different sizes.At present it is not used for processing.It is found in the Andamans and theLakshadweep. Recently, it has beenreported in the Gulf of Mannar.Holothuria pervicax(Selenka)This is a small species which canreach a length of 120 mm. The body issubcylindrical in shape and the upperand lower sides are well demarcated.The upper side is brown in color with5-7 honey colored transverse bands,while the lower side is lighter, mottledwith white and light violet colors. It isa rare species. At present it is not usedfor processing. In the seas around Indiait is found in the Gulf of Mannar, theAndamans and Lakshadweep.Acaudina molpadioides(Semper)The body of this species of seacucumber is fusi-form with a moretapering posterior end compared tothe anterior end. It reaches a lengthof 150 mm. Its body surface issmooth. Small specimens aretransparent. This species is knownto live in slightly less saline waters.It is uniformly flesh-colored. In thePalk Bay it is found year round intrawl catches. Sometimes hugequantities are caught during nighttrawling. At present this species isnot used for any purpose. Perhapsthis species can be used as feed forducks. In the seas around India it isfound in the Gulf of Mannar andPalk Bay and the Andamans.Synapta maculata(Chamisso and Eysenhardt)This species has a body which islong and snake-like. It can reach morethan 2 m in length. It is usually foundFig. 17. Holothuria arenicola (Semper).Fig. 18. Holothuria pervicax (Selenka).Fig. 19. Acaudina molpadioides (Semper).on the reef flat. It shovels sand intothe mouth with its relatively largetentacles. Tentacles are seen to be inactive movement during feeding. Itcrawls along by holding on to solidobjects. It is tan to brown in colorwith black markings. The whole bodysurface has small white rings whichare closely arranged. In the seasaround India it is found in theAndamans and the Lakshadweep.There is a record of one specimenfound in the Gulf of Mannar.AcknowledgmentsI thank Dr. M.V. Gupta, Director,International Relations Office,ICLARM-The World Fish Center,Penang for kindly going through thispaper and making improvements. Ialso thank Mr. K.Sachithanathanformer Processing Expert of the FAOfor three photographs presented here.ReferencesAnonymous 1974. Beche-de-mer of theSouth Pacific Islands : A handbook forfishermen. South Pacific Commission,Noumea, New Caledonia. 30 p.Anonymous 1979. Beche-de-mer of TropicalPacific Islands : A handbook forfishermen. South Pacific Commission,Handbook No. 18 : 1-29.Anonymous 1994. Sea cucumbers and Beche-de-mer of Tropical Pacific : A handbook forfishermen. South Pacific Commission,Handbook No. 18 (Revised Edition) : 1-51.Gosliner, T.M., D.W. Behrens and G.C. Williams.1996. Coral reef animals of the Indo-Pacific.Sea Challengers, California. 314 p.James, D.B. and P.S.B.R. James 1994. Ahandbook on Indian sea cucumbers.CMFRI Spl. Pub., 59: 1-46.Rowe F.W.E. and J.E. Boty 1977. Theshallow-water holothurians of Guam.Micronesia.13(2) : 217 – 250.__________________D.B. James is a retired Senior Scientist ofCentral Marine Fisheries Research Institute,Cochin, India.Fig. 20. Synapta maculata(Chamisso and Eysenhardt) .

Twenty sea cucumbers from seas around India

Aquatic Commons

4 Naga, The ICLARM Quarterly (Vol. 24, Nos. 1 & 2) January-June 2001
Cymodocea beds. It spends part of
the day buried in sand. It can be
found in the intertidal region to a
depth of 10 m. Younger forms are
distributed near the shore and as they
grow they migrate to deeper waters
for breeding. This is the most widely
used species after A. Japonicus and
also the most valuable species for
processing. It is gregarious in nature
and is therefore easily exploited.
The seed of this species was
produced for the first time in India
in 1988. Deeper water forms are
known as Holothuria scabra var.
versicolor. They  can grow to a
length of 450 mm and their color can
range from beige to a uniform black.
They can be found in the seas around
India from the Andaman and
Nicobar Islands and in the Gulf of
Mannar and Palk Bay. The deep
water form is also known to occur
in the Lakshadweep.
Twenty Sea Cucumbers
from Seas Around India
D.B. James
Introduction
Sea cucumbers are a fascinating
group of marine animals. They live
chiefly among corals but are also
found among rocks and in muddy and
sandy flats. They are distributed from
the shore to the greatest depths. Their
lengths range from a few millimeters
to more than 2 m and they occur in
all color combinations: white, black,
red, blue, green, yellow, violet etc.
Some of them are really very
beautiful while alive and are in great
demand for aquaria. The Chinese,
Japanese and Koreans consider them
a delicacy. The Chinese consume
them in processed form while the
Japanese and the Koreans consume
Apostichopus japonicus, fresh. The
toxins of sea cucumbers have
antiviral, antitumoral, anticancerous
and antifertility properties and find
use in the pharmaceutical industry.
Some species like Pseudocnus
echinatus are fed to ducks in China.
At present nearly 1 400 species
of sea cucumbers are known from all
the seas in the world. Of these only
15 species are used for processing at
present. There are nearly 200 known
species in the seas around India, most
of them in deep waters. About 75
species have been shown to be
present in shallow waters while
nearly 50 species can be collected
from the intertidal region.
There are very few publications
with color photographs of sea
cucumbers. The South Pacific
Commission (Anon 1974, 1979,
1994) has produced three
publications on the processing
industry of Tropical Pacific sea
cucumbers with color photographs.
Rowe and Boty (1997) have taken
color photographs of sea cucumbers
from Guam. James and James (1994)
brought out a handbook on Indian sea
cucumbers with color photographs of
the commercially important species.
The recent publication of Gosliner et
al. (1996) on coral reef animals of the
Indo-Pacific has excellent color
photographs taken in situ and is of
great help in identifying the species.
The 20 species are described below
in the order of importance for
processing. Some non-commercial
sea cucumbers are also included in
this report.
Holothuria scabra
(Jaeger)
Popularly known as Sandfish,
this sea cucumber can grow to a
length of 400 mm and reach a weight
of 1.5 kg. The upper side is grey in
color with white or yellow
horizontal bands. The lower side is
white in color with fine black dots.
It is found in silty sand, often near
low saline areas and frequently on
Fig. 1. Holothuria scabra (Jaeger).
Abstract
Twenty species of sea cucumbers from India are described briefly, with photographs which will enable
research workers and farmers to identify them.
5Naga, The ICLARM Quarterly (Vol. 24, Nos. 1 & 2) January-June 2001
Holothuria fuscogilva
(Cherbonnier)
Popularly known as White
Teatfish, this sea cucumber can
reach a length of 400 mm and weigh
between 2 to 3 kg. Six to eight teat-
like structures are present on each
side of the body. These are clearly
seen only in live specimens in water.
The body color is brown and it is
often covered with a fine coat of
sand. It occurs in slightly deeper
waters and is common on  coral slabs
near reef passages or at the foot of
reef slopes. This is a high value
species for processing. It is common
to the seas around India from the
Lakshadweep. Recently it has been
recorded in the Gulf of Mannar.
Holothuria nobilis
(Selenka)
This sea cucumber is commonly
known as Black Teatfish. Its body
is loaf-shaped and its maximum
length and weight is similar to the
previous species. Six to eight teat-
like projections are seen on each side
of the body in live specimens. The
body is covered with a fine coat of
coral sand, and is cream colored with
black blotches. This species is found
in shallow waters in lagoons. It is
more commonly found on shallow
reef bottoms that are not subject to
terrigenous influence. Juveniles may
be found on turtle-grass beds. This
species is valuable for processing.
In the seas around India it is found
only in the Andamans and
Lakshadweep.
Thelenota ananas
(Jaeger)
Commonly known as Prickly
Redfish, this species of sea
cucumber can grow to a massive
size and reach a length of 700 mm.
Live weight varies from 3 to 6 kg.
It is very distinctive in appearance
with large pointed ‘teats’ in groups
of two or three all over the body
surface. There are numerous large
tube feet on the flat underside. The
body is reddish orange with ‘teats’
darker than the rest of the body
surface. The tube feet on the
underside are bright orange.
However the specimens from the
Lakshadweep are brown on the
upper side and bright orange on the
lower side. They feed exclusively
on the calcareous alga Halmeda sp.
and are found in lagoons at depths
of up to 30 m on clean sandy
bottoms or on slabs near large coral
heads. It is a medium-value species
for processing. In the seas around
India it is known to occur only in
the Lakshadweep.
Holothuria spinifera
(Theel)
Commonly known as Brown
Sandfish, its length can reach 300
mm. The color of the upper surface
is a uniform brown, and there are
small sharp projections all over the
body. The lower side is generally
lighter in color. This species is never
found in the intertidal region. It is
found on clean sand in slightly
deeper waters. It is a highly
burrowing form and is usually found
in night trawl catches. This species
which was once considered very
valuable is now of  medium value
for processing. In the seas around
India it is found only in the Gulf of
Mannar and the Palk Bay.
      Actinopyga miliaris
(Quoy and Gaimard)
Commonly known as Blackfish,
this species of sea cucumber can
reach a maximum length of 300 mm.
Its live weight ranges from 0.5 to 2
kg. The body is cylindrical, with the
upper side arched and the lower side
flat. Its color is uniformly black.
Fig. 2. Holothuria fuscogilva (Cherbonnier).
Fig. 3. Holothuria nobilis (Selenka).
Fig. 4. Thelenota ananas (Jaeger).
Fig. 6. Actinopyga miliaris
(Quoy and Gaimard).
f
e
a
t
u
r
e
Fig. 5. Holothuria spinifera (Theel).
6 Naga, The ICLARM Quarterly (Vol. 24, Nos. 1 & 2) January-June 2001
This species lives gregariously like
H. scabra and is therefore easily
exploited. It is distributed in shallow
waters up to a depth of 10 m. It is a
medium-value species for
processing. It has been processed
from the Gulf of Mannar only since
1991. In the seas around India it is
found in the Gulf of Mannar, the
Andamans and the Lakshadweep.
Actinopyga echinites
(Jaeger)
Commonly known as Deep Water
Redfish, this sea cucumber species
can grow  to a length of 300  mm and
reach a maximum weight of 2 kg. The
body is wider in the middle and tapers
at both ends. The upper surface is
wrinkled, often with fine sand settled
over it. The color is uniformly brown.
It attaches itself to rocks with its tube
feet. It occurs at depths of between 3
to 7 m. It is a medium value species
for processing.  Processing first
began in the Gulf of Mannar around
1990. In the seas around India it is
distributed in the Gulf of Mannar, the
Andamans and the Lakshadweep.
Actinopyga mauritiana
(Quoy and Gaimard)
Commonly known as Surf
Redfish, the body of this species of
sea cucumber is arched on the upper
side and flat on the lower side. It can
grow to a length of 250 mm and its
live weight can reach about 1 kg.
The color of live specimens is
brick red on the upper side and white
on the lower side. It is usually found
where the surf breaks on the reefs,
firmly attached to coral stones. It is a
medium-value species for processing.
In the seas around India it is found in
the Andamans and the Lakshadweep.
Recently a single specimen was
collected from the Gulf of Mannar.
Bohadschia marmorata
(Jaeger)
Commonly known as Chalkyfish,
this sea cucumber species has a short
and thick body with the lower side
slightly flattened. It  can reach a
length of 400 mm and live weight of
between 1 to 2 kg. It is distributed
between the intertidal region and a
depth of 10 m. It occurs in coarse coral
sand at depths between 2 and 6 m. It
is also found in the intertidal region
with a fine layer of mud which peels
off easily. It is a burrowing form and
comes out of the mud during cloudy
days and at night. White sticky
threads are abundant, which makes
processing a bit difficult. It is a low
value species for processing. In the
seas around India it is found in the
Gulf of Mannar, the Andamans and
the Lakshadweep.
Bohadschia sp.
This species was recently
collected from the lagoon of Kavatatti
Island in the Lakshadweep. It is
distributed in the lagoon at a depth
of 2-3 m and is a rare sea cucumber.
The body wall is thick and leathery.
During collection white sticky
threads are ejected by the animal. The
body is cream colored with
characteristic brown patches. Of
value for processing, this is a new
species. A detailed description will be
published elsewhere.
Stichopus varigatus
(Semper)
Popularly known as Curryfish, in
adults the body is four-sided and
loaf-shaped. It can reach a length of
900 mm. Larger forms occur in
deeper waters. In younger forms the
tubercles are more prominent. They
occur on algal beds and on clean
sandy bottoms. Alive they are dark
Fig. 7. Actinopyga echinites (Jaeger).
Fig. 9. Bohadschia marmorata (Jaeger).
Fig. 10. Bohadschia sp.
Fig. 11. Stichopus varigatus (Semper).
Fig. 8. Actinopyga mauritiana
(Quoy and Gaimard) .
7Naga, The ICLARM Quarterly (Vol. 24, Nos. 1 & 2) January-June 2001
and often two or three specimens are
found under coral stones. In some
specimens a Carapid fish is known
to live at the base of the respiratory
tree. At present it is not used for
processing. In the seas around India
it is found in the Gulf of Mannar, the
Andamans and the Lakshadweep.
Holothuria impatiens
(Forskal)
In this species the body is bottle-
shaped with a long neck and rough
surface, sandy to touch. It is covered
with conical warts from which
filamentous appendages emerge. It
is a secretive form found under dead
coral stones. Often two or three
specimens are found under the same
coral stone. On disturbing the animal
white sticky threads are ejected. It
is an active sea cucumber. It is light
brown in color with 4-5 dark brown
transverse bands on the upper side
near the anterior end. At present it
is not used for processing. In the seas
around India it is found in the Gulf
of Mannar, the Andamans and the
Lakshadweep.
yellow with irregular brown patches.
This species is of low value for
processing. A pea crab is known to
live in the cloacal chamber. In the
seas around India it is found in the
Gulf of Mannar, the Andamans and
the Lakshadweep.
Holothuria atra (Jaeger)
Commonly known as Lollyfish,
this species reaches a length of 600 mm.
When live specimens are handled a
red fluid stains the hand. Sometimes
this species is covered with a fine
coating of sand. It lies out in the open
and occurs on the dead coral reef
flats. It prefers to live in areas which
are abundant in the calcareous alga
Halmeda sp., on which it feeds. Its
color is uniformly black. It is a very
low value species for processing and
is the most widely distributed. In the
seas around India it is found in the
Gulf of Mannar and Palk Bay, the
Andamans and the Lakshadweep.
Holothuria edulis
(Lesson)
Popularly known as Pinkfish,
this species has an elongated body,
narrow at the anterior and blunt at
the posterior. It is never found in the
intertidal region in India. It is usually
bright pink in color with varying
degrees of black. The black color is
well marked on the upper side only,
while the lower side is uniformly
pink in color. It is a low-value
species for processing. In the seas
around India it is found only in the
Gulf of Mannar and the Andamans.
Holothuria leucospilota
(Brandt)
This species has a long and
snake-like body. It has a peculiar
habit of sticking its posterior end
under a stone. The anterior end
projects out from the stone and
keeps on moving with the ventrally
directed tentacles. On being
disturbed the animal throws out
white sticky threads. Like H. atra it
is uniformly black in color. However
on handling no red color stains the
hand and no sand sticks to the body
surface.  At present it is of no
commercial value. In the seas
around India it is found in the Gulf
of Mannar and Palk Bay, the
Andamans and the Lakshadweep.
Holothuria hilla (Lesson)
This species has a body which is
long and cylindrical with blunt ends.
It reaches a length of 200 mm. The
body wall is soft with the upper and
lower sides well demarcated, light
brown in color with scattered white
conical papillae. It is a fugitive form
Fig. 13. Holothuria edulis (Lesson).
Fig. 15. Holothuria hilla (Lesson).
Fig. 12. Holothuria atra (Jaeger).
Fig. 14. Holothuria leucospilota (Brandt).
Fig. 16. Holothuria impatiens (Forskal).
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8 Naga, The ICLARM Quarterly (Vol. 24, Nos. 1 & 2) January-June 2001
Holothuria arenicola
(Semper)
The body of this species of sea
cucumber is slender and vermiform.
It reaches a length of 200 mm. It is a
highly burrowing form. Often it is
difficult to collect this species since it
quickly burrows out of reach into the
sand. Sometimes a fish is known to
live inside the body of this species.
Generally the color of the body is
white. The upper side has reddish
brown spots or dots of different sizes.
At present it is not used for processing.
It is found in the Andamans and the
Lakshadweep. Recently, it has been
reported in the Gulf of Mannar.
Holothuria pervicax
(Selenka)
This is a small species which can
reach a length of 120 mm. The body is
subcylindrical in shape and the upper
and lower sides are well demarcated.
The upper side is brown in color with
5-7 honey colored transverse bands,
while the lower side is lighter, mottled
with white and light violet colors. It is
a rare species. At present it is not used
for processing. In the seas around India
it is found in the Gulf of Mannar, the
Andamans and Lakshadweep.
Acaudina molpadioides
(Semper)
The body of this species of sea
cucumber is fusi-form with a more
tapering posterior end compared to
the anterior end. It reaches a length
of 150 mm. Its body surface is
smooth. Small specimens are
transparent. This species is known
to live in slightly less saline waters.
It is uniformly flesh-colored. In the
Palk Bay it is found year round in
trawl catches. Sometimes huge
quantities are caught during night
trawling. At present this species is
not used for any purpose. Perhaps
this species can be used as feed for
ducks. In the seas around India it is
found in the Gulf of Mannar and
Palk Bay and the Andamans.
Synapta maculata
(Chamisso and Eysenhardt)
This species has a body which is
long and snake-like. It can reach more
than 2 m in length. It is usually found
Fig. 17. Holothuria arenicola (Semper).
Fig. 18. Holothuria pervicax (Selenka).
Fig. 19. Acaudina molpadioides (Semper).
on the reef flat. It shovels sand into
the mouth with its relatively large
tentacles. Tentacles are seen to be in
active movement during feeding. It
crawls along by holding on to solid
objects. It is tan to brown in color
with black markings. The whole body
surface has small white rings which
are closely arranged. In the seas
around India it is found in the
Andamans and the Lakshadweep.
There is a record of one specimen
found in the Gulf of Mannar.
Acknowledgments
I thank Dr. M.V. Gupta, Director,
International Relations Office,
ICLARM-The World Fish Center,
Penang for kindly going through this
paper and making improvements. I
also thank Mr. K.Sachithanathan
former Processing Expert of the FAO
for three photographs presented here.
References
Anonymous 1974. Beche-de-mer of the
South Pacific Islands : A handbook for
fishermen. South Pacific Commission,
Noumea, New Caledonia. 30 p.
Anonymous 1979. Beche-de-mer of Tropical
Pacific Islands : A handbook for
fishermen. South Pacific Commission,
Handbook No. 18 : 1-29.
Anonymous 1994. Sea cucumbers and Beche-
de-mer of Tropical Pacific : A handbook for
fishermen. South Pacific Commission,
Handbook No. 18 (Revised Edition) : 1-51.
Gosliner, T.M., D.W. Behrens and G.C. Williams.
1996. Coral reef animals of the Indo-Pacific.
Sea Challengers, California. 314 p.
James, D.B. and P.S.B.R. James 1994. A
handbook on Indian sea cucumbers.
CMFRI Spl. Pub., 59: 1-46.
Rowe F.W.E. and J.E. Boty 1977. The
shallow-water holothurians of Guam.
Micronesia.13(2) : 217 – 250.
__________________
D.B. James is a retired Senior Scientist of
Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute,
Cochin, India.
Fig. 20. Synapta maculata
(Chamisso and Eysenhardt) .


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Twenty sea cucumbers from seas around India

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