Taeniogyrus dunedinensis

Taeniogyrus dunedinensis
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Echinodermata
Class:	Holothuroidea
Order:	Apodida
Family:	Chiridotidae
Genus:	Taeniogyrus
Species:	T. dunedinensis
Binomial name
Taeniogyrus dunedinensis Parker, 1881
Synonyms
Taeniogyrus benhamiDendy, 1909 Chirodota dunedinensisParker, 1881 Chirodota benhamiDendy, 1909 Chirodota geminiferaDendy & Hindle, 1907 Trochodota dunedinensisParker, 1881 Trochodota benhamiDendy, 1909

Taeniogyrus dunedinensis, commonly known as the burrowing sea cucumber, is a small species of sea cucumber from New Zealand.

Description

Taeniogyrus dunedinensis is named after Dunedin, the city in which it was first identified by Thomas Parker, and was first called Chirodota dunedinensis. ^[1] It has one subspecies, Taeniogyrus dunedinensis microurna (Mortensen, 1925). ^[2]

Parker originally described the creature as being about 4 centimetres (2 in) in length, with ten tapering whitish tentacles, a smooth integument, and a yellowish colour caused by the internal organs being visible through its translucent skin. He also described small red spots on the body which disappear when placed in spirit, and dark spots on the inner side of the tentacles, which are not affected by spirit. ^[1]

Distribution

T. dunedinensis is found in the littoral zone, around the coast of New Zealand, including the Auckland and Chatham Islands. ^[3]

References

1. Parker, TJ (1881). "On a new Holothurian (Chirodota dundinensis n. sp.)". Transactions of the New Zealand Institute. 13: 418. Archived from the original on 11 August 2019. Retrieved 11 August 2019.
2. "WoRMS - World Register of Marine Species - Taeniogyrus dunedinensis (Parker, 1881)". www.marinespecies.org. Archived from the original on 3 June 2021. Retrieved 11 August 2019.
3. "Taeniogyrus dunedinensis (Parker, 1881)". www.gbif.org. Archived from the original on 11 August 2019. Retrieved 11 August 2019.