Holothuria spinifera

Holothuria spinifera, the brown sandfish, is a species of sea cucumber in the family Holothuriidae. It is placed in the subgenus Theelothuria, making its full name Holothuria (Theelothuria) spinifera. In India it is known as cheena attai or raja attai. It lives in tropical regions of the west Indo-Pacific Ocean at depths ranging from 32 to 60 metres. It is fished commercially to produce beche-de-mer.

Description

Holothuria spinifera has a cylindrical body, dark brown on the upper side and pale brown beneath. The skin is densely covered with sharp conical protuberances. It can grow to a length of . == Biology ==

Biology

Holothuria spinifera is a scavenger, sifting through the sediment on the seabed with its tentacles. It usually spends the day buried in the sediment and emerges at night. == Ecology ==

Ecology

In Vietnam, a small bivalve shell, Entovalva nhatrangensis, is found living as an endosymbiont inside the oesophagus of Holothuria spinifera. The mollusc is a filter feeder and extracts nourishment from sediment that the sea cucumber has swallowed. == Use as food ==

Use as food

In India, both Holothuria spinifera and the sandfish (Holothuria scabra) are harvested for human consumption. It is best gathered by skin diving and handled gently. Most however is caught by trawling but the resulting quality is lower than when it is brought to the surface by divers. This is because, if handled roughly it is liable to eviscerate, voiding its viscera and respiratory tree. == References ==

Source: Wikipedia ↗

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