Cucumariidae is a

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

sea cucumbers Sea cucumbers are echinoderms from the class Holothuroidea (). They are marine animals with a leathery skin and an elongated body containing a single, branched gonad. Sea cucumbers are found on the sea floor worldwide. The number of holothurian ...

, marine animals with elongated bodies, leathery skins and tentacles that are found on the sea bed.

Description

Members of the family Cucumariidae are small to medium-sized sea cucumbers, characterised by ten branching

tentacle In zoology, a tentacle is a flexible, mobile, and elongated organ present in some species of animals, most of them invertebrates. In animal anatomy, tentacles usually occur in one or more pairs. Anatomically, the tentacles of animals work main ...

s of which the lowest two are often smaller than the others. They are

filter feeders Filter feeders are a sub-group of suspension feeding animals that feed by straining suspended matter and food particles from water, typically by passing the water over a specialized filtering structure. Some animals that use this method of feedin ...

, using their tentacles to catch micro-organisms and pass them to their mouth. They are seldom found on

coral reef A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of Colony (biology), colonies of coral polyp (zoology), polyps held together by calcium carbonate. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, wh ...

s but mostly live in deep water on sand and gravel substrates. Certain

genera Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nomenclat ...

including the

sea apple Sea apple is the common name for the colorful and somewhat round sea cucumbers of the genus ''Pseudocolochirus'', found in Indo-Pacific waters. Sea apples are filter feeders with tentacles, ovate bodies, and tube-like feet. As with many other ho ...

s in the genera ''

Paracucumaria Cucumariidae is a family of sea cucumbers, marine animals with elongated bodies, leathery skins and tentacles that are found on the sea bed. Description Members of the family Cucumariidae are small to medium-sized sea cucumbers, characterised by ...

'' and ''

Pseudocolochirus Sea apple is the common name for the colorful and somewhat round sea cucumbers of the genus ''Pseudocolochirus'', found in Indo-Pacific waters. Sea apples are filter feeders with tentacles, ovate bodies, and tube-like feet. As with many other ho ...

'', contain toxic

holothurin The holothurins are a group of toxins originally isolated from the sea cucumber '' Actinopyga agassizii''. They are contained within clusters of sticky threads called Cuvierian tubules which are expelled from the sea cucumber as a mode of sel ...

and holotoxin and release it into the water when damaged or killed. Spawning may also be accompanied by release of these toxins. For this reason, although they are interesting and attractive to keep in aquaria, it is inadvisable to keep them in a tank with other reef species.

Taxonomy

A number of

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriat ...

that were placed in the family Phyllophoridae by Thander in 1989 and 1990 are now included in Cucumariidae. The following genera are accepted in the family Cucumariidae: *'' Abyssocucumis'' Heding, 1942 *'' Actinocucumis'' Ludwig, 1875 *'' Amphicyclus'' Bell, 1884 *'' Anaperus'' Troschel, 1846 *'' Apseudocnus'' Levin, 2006 *'' Apsolidium'' O'Loughlin & O' Hara, 1992 *''

Aslia ''Aslia'' is a genus of echinoderms belonging to the family Cucumariidae Cucumariidae is a family of sea cucumbers, marine animals with elongated bodies, leathery skins and tentacles that are found on the sea bed. Description Members of the f ...

'' Rowe, 1970 *'' Athyonidium'' Deichmann, 1941 *'' Australocnus'' O'Loughlin & Alcock, 2000 *'' Benthophyllophorus'' Deichmann, 1954 *'' Calcamariina'' O'Loughlin in O'Loughlin et al., 2015 *'' Cercodemas'' Selenka, 1867 *'' Cherbocnus'' Thandar in Thandar & Mjobo, 2014 *'' Cladodactyla'' Brandt, 1835 *''

Colochirus ''Colochirus'' is a genus of sea cucumbers in the family Cucumariidae. Species The World Register of Marine Species lists the following species In biology, a species is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), classification and a taxonomic r ...

'' Troschel, 1846 *'' Cucamba'' O'Loughlin, 2009 *''

Cucumaria ''Cucumaria'' is a genus of sea cucumber Sea cucumbers are echinoderms from the class Holothuroidea (). They are marine animals with a leathery skin and an elongated body containing a single, branched gonad. Sea cucumbers are found on the s ...

'' Blainville, 1830 *'' Cucusquama'' O'Loughlin in O'Loughlin, Tavancheh & Harding, 2016 *'' Cucuvitrum'' O'Loughlin & O' Hara, 1992 *'' Echinopsolus'' Gutt, 1990 *'' Ekmania'' Hansen & McKenzie, 1991 *'' Euthyonacta'' Deichmann, 1954 *'' Hemiocnus'' Mjobo & Thandar, 2016 *'' Hemioedema'' Hérouard, 1929 *'' Heterocucumis'' Panning, 1949 *'' Incubocnus'' Thandar & Vinola, 2017 *'' Lanceophora'' Thandar, Zettler & Arumugam, 2010 *'' Leptopentacta'' H.L. Clark, 1938 *'' Loisettea'' Rowe & Pawson, 1985 *'' Mensamaria'' H.L. Clark, 1946 *'' Neoamphicyclus'' Hickman, 1962 *'' Neocucumella'' Pawson, 1962 *'' Neocucumis'' Deichmann, 1944 *''

Ocnus In Greek and Roman mythology, Ocnus ( grc, Ὄκνος) or Bianor ( grc, Βιάνωρ) was a son of Manto and Tiberinus Silvius, king of Alba Longa. He founded modern Mantua in honor of his mother. Alternatively, he was the son or brother of ...

'' Forbes & Goodsir, in Forbes, 1841 *'' Orbithyone'' Clark, 1938 *'' Panningia'' Cherbonnier, 1958 *'' Paracolochirus'' Pawson, Pawson & King, 2010 *''

'' Panning, 1949 *'' Paraleptopentacta'' Mezali, Thandar & Khodja, 2020 *'' Parathyonacta'' Caso, 1984 *'' Parathyone'' Deichmann, 1957 *'' Parathyonidium'' Heding in Heding & Panning, 1954 *'' Patallus'' Selenka, 1868 *'' Pawsonellus'' Thandar, 1986 *'' Pawsonia'' Rowe, 1970 *'' Pentacta'' Goldfuss, 1820 *'' Pentactella'' Verrill, 1876 *'' Pentocnus'' O'Loughlin & O'Hara, 1992 *'' Plesiocolochirus'' Cherbonnier, 1946 *'' Pseudoaslia'' Thandar, 1991 *'' Pseudocnella'' Thandar, 1987 *'' Pseudocnus'' Panning, 1949 *''

'' Pearson, 1910 *'' Pseudopsolus'' Ludwig, 1898 *'' Pseudrotasfer'' Bohn, 2007 *'' Psolicrux'' O'Loughlin, 2002 *'' Psolicucumis'' Heding, 1934 *'' Psolidiella'' Mortensen, 1926 *'' Psolidocnus'' O'Loughlin & Alcock, 2000 *'' Roweia'' Thandar, 1985 *'' Squamocnus'' O'Loughlin & O'Hara, 1992 *'' Staurocucumis'' Ekman, 1927 *'' Staurothyone'' H.L. Clark, 1938 *'' Stereoderma'' Ayres, 1851 *'' Thyonella'' Verrill, 1872 *'' Thyonidium'' Düben & Koren, 1846 *'' Trachasina'' Thandar *'' Trachycucumis'' Thandar & Moodley, 2003 *'' Trachythyone'' Studer, 1876 File:Aslia lefevrii - Carantec.jpg, '' Aslia lefevrii'' File:Colochirus robustus1.jpg, '' Colochirus robustus'' File:Cucumaria big.jpg, '' Cucumaria miniata'' File:Ocnus planci (Brandt, 1835) .jpg, '' Ocnus planci'' File:Calliostoma zizyphinum, Pawsonia saxicola - Carantec.jpg, '' Pawsonia saxicola''

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2492981 Echinoderm families