Giant California Sea Cucumber
Apostichopus californicus
Marine Life of the Northeast Pacific (MLNEP) notes 5
From "Invertebrates of the Salish Sea" (link below)
Description: Large sea cucumber ranging from 25 to 40cm in body length. Dorsal and lateral surfaces dark red, brown, or yellow. The body surface bears large, stiff, conical papillae or pseudospines. Papillae are usually paler in color than body surface and tipped with red. Tube feet are densely arranged on the ventral side and only three pairs of rows of tube feet are distinct. The mouth is directed ventrally at the anterior end (photo) and is surrounded by tentacles. Length to 50 cm.
How to Distinguish from Similar Species: Parastichopus parvimensis, which lives from Monterey Bay south, is very similar in form and can grow to nearly as large, but the body is chestnut brown dorsally and much paler below; plus the tips of its papillae are tipped with black instead of red. Parastichopus leucothele is colored similarly but lives at deeper depths (24-285 m) and is colored bright orange with rusty brown patches and small white papillae.
https://inverts.wallawalla.edu/Echinodermata/Class%20Holothuroidea/Parastichopus_californicus.html
Sources and Credits
- (c) Merlin Best, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Merlin Best
- (c) sea_goin, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
- (c) kelly_swan, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by kelly_swan
- (c) Zach Baranowski, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND), uploaded by Zach Baranowski
- (c) Merlin Best, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)
