| Pawsonia saxicola | |
|---|---|
 | |
| In a crevice | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Echinodermata |
| Class: | Holothuroidea |
| Order: | Dendrochirotida |
| Family: | Cucumariidae |
| Genus: | Pawsonia |
| Species: | P. saxicola |
| Binomial name | |
| Pawsonia saxicola (Brady & Robertson, 1871) [1] | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Pawsonia saxicola, the sea gherkin, [2] is a species of sea cucumber in the family Cucumariidae. It is found in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.
Pawsonia saxicola has a solid, cylindrical body and can grow to a length of 150 mm (6 in). The mouth is at the anterior end and is surrounded by a circle of ten, black and white, mottled, branching, tentacles used for feeding, up to 100 mm (4 in) long. The cuticle of the body is smooth with five longitudinal rows of tube feet. The ventral rows are double and clearly visible, while the dorsal rows are largely replaced by low button-shaped protuberances, except near the mouth. The cuticle contains calcareous spicules which are star-shaped. [2] [3] This sea cucumber may be confused with Aslia lefevrei . Both live in crevices with their dark-coloured tentacles projecting; P. saxicola is white, but may darken somewhat when exposed to light, while Aslia lefevrei is brown. [2] [4]
This sea cucumber is native to the northeastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. Its range extends from the west and south coast of the British Isles to the coasts of France, Spain and Portugal and to the Azores. Its habitat is rocky shores where it conceals itself in crevices and under rocks, from the lower shore down to around 50 m (160 ft). [2]
Pawsonia saxicola is a suspension feeder, consuming diatoms and single-cell algae and also zooplankton, such as copepods, ostracods, protozoans, nematodes, jellyfish and larvae, as well as drifting organic particles. The food is gathered by the feeding tentacles which each in turn shrinks and bends and is inserted into the mouth; the two ventral tentacles are short and forked, and are used at the mouth to push particles inside. [5] Although in some related species the short tentacles co-ordinate their activities with the longer tentacles, this is not the case in P. saxicola where they seem to act independently. [5]
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Phascolosoma granulatum is a species of peanut worm in the family Phascolosomatidae. It is found in shallow water in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.
Paraleptopentacta elongata is a species of sea cucumber in the family Cucumariidae. It is found in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean and parts of the Mediterranean Sea. It is an infaunal species, occupying a burrow in the seabed, from which its anterior and posterior ends project.
Themiste pyroides is a species of unsegmented benthic marine worm in the phylum Sipuncula, the peanut worms. It occurs in the intertidal zone and shallow water in the western Atlantic Ocean and the northeastern Pacific Ocean. It lives in crevices and under rocks, extending its "crown" of branching tentacles into the surrounding water to feed.
Thyone roscovita is a species of sea cucumber in the family Phyllophoridae. It is found on gravel, sand and mud substrates in the north-eastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea at depths down to about 40 m (130 ft). It is a suspension feeder and catches food particles floating past with its branched feeding tentacles.
Holothuria (Roweothuria) poli, also known as the white spot cucumber, is a species of sea cucumber in the family Holothuridae and the subgenus Roweothuria. The species was first described by the Italian doctor and naturalist Stefano delle Chiaje in 1824. The species' range has been documented as being in the Mediterranean Sea, Red Sea, and the Bay of Biscay.
Holothuria (Selenkothuria) glaberrima, also known as the brown rock sea cucumber, is a species of sea cucumber in the genus Holothuria, subgenus Selenkothuria. The cucumber is distributed in the Western Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean Sea, and the Gulf of Mexico. The species is found at a depth of 0–42 meters.
Parastichopus regalis, also known as the royal sea cucumber, is a species of sea cucumber in the family Stichopodidae.