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Sea Cucumber Is a sea cucumber a plant? The sea cucumber is not a plant. It's a marine animal! They are echinoderms which means they are related to starfish. There are about 900 species of sea cucumbers. Where are its body parts like the mouth? The mouth and bottom are located at opposite ends of the body. The mouth is surrounded by tentacles that capture small plants called plankton and organic matter. The sea cucumber sometimes cleans its tentacles by putting them in its mouth one at a time.

How are sea cucumbers and starfish related? Like all other echinoderms, sea cucumbers have a five-star pattern. They have a top and bottom face. The bottom face has three arms and a tube foot used to move it along the sea bottom. On the top face, there are 2 more arms with tentacles.

Is the sea cucumber soft and squishy? No, the sea cucumber may look soft, but it's covered by a thick, tough skin. The top skin covers many, microscopic pieces of skeleton called spicules. The shape of spicules is different depending upon where they are on the sea cucumber's body. These pieces of skeleton can be shaped like rods, disks, or plates. Some skeleton pieces are called anchors because they are used by the sea cucumber to anchor it to the bottom.

Do all sea cucumbers look alike? They vary in size, shape, and color. All sea cucumbers are tubular, but they vary in length. The shortest ones are about one-half inch and the longest ones are 16 feet fully extended! There are some species living at great depths with bright colored rings, spots, and stripes.

How do sea cucumbers grow? They start out as small larvae with no skeleton and it's ringed by tiny hairs called cilia. It uses the cilia to move through the water. The sea cucumber then changes into the tube shape of an adult.

When do they move around? Sea cucumbers move at night to look for food. During the day, they lie still on rocks or bury themselves in sand or mud. They can be found in shallow tide pools to the deepest oceans. Sea cucumbers have been found at 33,500 feet deep in the ocean! Scientists have found that 9 of 10 animals seen at depths below 28,000 feet are sea cucumbers.

Where do sea cucumbers live in the ocean? They live in many different places. Most sea cucumbers live on the ocean bottom, but some can swim. They live on the sea floor or dig themselves into soft mud or sand. They also live in rock crevices and on the underside of stones and boulders. Some even live on the surface of algae!

How do sea cucumbers defend themselves? When they feel danger, they basically spill their guts! A predator like a fish eats the ejected digestive system and other organs and leaves the rest of the sea cucumber alone. Within a couple of weeks, it can regrow another set of guts.