Marine Life

Sea Cucumber
(Parastichopus parvimensis)
Courtesy of Tom Haight

These tube-like animals are often mistaken for sea slugs but are actually a member of the echinoderm phylum, more closely related to sea stars and sea urchins. It is orange in color with numerous bumps and protrusions. It can grow to 12 inches and ranges from Monterey to Baja California in very shallow water to as deep as 100 feet. This sea cucumber has rows of tube feet concentrated on its ventral side. It feeds on detritus it finds on the bottom as it crawls along. As an escape response the sea cucumber has been know to expel its innards hoping that the maneuver will deter its attacker.