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Actinopyga agassizii (Selenka, 1867)
Actinopyga agassizii can be found from 0 to 54 m deep. It forages on fine detrital
sediments in algal turfs, seagrass beds and in rubble or sand-covered areas.
Distribution of this species is in Caribbean coast of Florida (USA), Cuba, Mexico,
Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras,
Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia (Atlantic), Venezuela (Bolivarian
Republic of), the Bahamas, Barbados and the United States of America. The
Japanese sea cucumber sifts through the sediment on the seabed with its tentacles
and feeds on detritus and other organic matter including plant and animal remains,
bacteria, protozoa, diatoms, and faeces (Purcell et al. 2012).
Actinopyga echinites (Jaeger, 1833)
Despite being named “deep-water” redfish, the species lives in shallow waters,
mostly on flats (reefs and seagrass beds) down to 10 m depth with relatively high
densities. This species has separate sexes and is reported to live more than 12 years.
Spawning occurs in the dry season, size of maturity is reported at about 12 cm, or a
weight between 45 and 90 g. It is found throughout the western central Pacific, Asia,
Africa, and Indian Ocean region. Common in the Indo-Pacific, islands of western
Indian Ocean, Mascarene Islands, East Africa, Madagascar, southeast Arabia, Sri
Lanka, Bay of Bengal, East Indies, north Australia, the Philippines, China and
southern Japan, South Sea Islands (Purcell et al. 2012).
Holothuria tubulosa (Gmelin, 1791)
Holothuria tubulosa, the cotton-spinner or tubular sea cucumber, is a species of sea
cucumber in the family Holothuriidae. It is the type species of the genus Holothuria
and is placed in the subgenus Holothuria, making its full name Holothuria tubulosa.
Holothuria tubulosa is found in temperate regions of the eastern Atlantic Ocean as
far north as the Bay of Biscay and in the Mediterranean Sea, where it is abundant. It
is found on sandy seabeds, among seagrass (Posidonia spp.) and on muddy rocks to
a depth of about 100 m (Wikipedia 2020d).
4.3.1.6 Nutritional Composition of Sea Cucumber
The body wall is the sea cucumber’s major edible (and medicinal) organ. It consists
mainly of epithelial and dermal connective tissues. Among the general biochemical
components (related to nutrition), moisture content stands the highest, followed by
crude protein, ash content and total carbohydrate, and finally crude fat content. The
body wall of sea cucumber also contains polysaccharides, lipids, and collagen (Xia
and Wang 2015).
Proteins are the most abundant chemical components and can account 40–60 wt%
of sea cucumber dry matter (Wen et al. 2010). Most sea cucumber proteins are in
collagen form. Collagens, which constitute the body tissues of sea cucumbers, contribute to the flavours of sea cucumbers as the main structural proteins (Liu
et al. 2017).
4 Echinoderms
Actinopyga agassizii (Selenka, 1867)
Actinopyga agassizii can be found from 0 to 54 m deep. It forages on fine detrital
sediments in algal turfs, seagrass beds and in rubble or sand-covered areas.
Distribution of this species is in Caribbean coast of Florida (USA), Cuba, Mexico,
Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras,
Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia (Atlantic), Venezuela (Bolivarian
Republic of), the Bahamas, Barbados and the United States of America. The
Japanese sea cucumber sifts through the sediment on the seabed with its tentacles
and feeds on detritus and other organic matter including plant and animal remains,
bacteria, protozoa, diatoms, and faeces (Purcell et al. 2012).
Actinopyga echinites (Jaeger, 1833)
Despite being named “deep-water” redfish, the species lives in shallow waters,
mostly on flats (reefs and seagrass beds) down to 10 m depth with relatively high
densities. This species has separate sexes and is reported to live more than 12 years.
Spawning occurs in the dry season, size of maturity is reported at about 12 cm, or a
weight between 45 and 90 g. It is found throughout the western central Pacific, Asia,
Africa, and Indian Ocean region. Common in the Indo-Pacific, islands of western
Indian Ocean, Mascarene Islands, East Africa, Madagascar, southeast Arabia, Sri
Lanka, Bay of Bengal, East Indies, north Australia, the Philippines, China and
southern Japan, South Sea Islands (Purcell et al. 2012).
Holothuria tubulosa (Gmelin, 1791)
Holothuria tubulosa, the cotton-spinner or tubular sea cucumber, is a species of sea
cucumber in the family Holothuriidae. It is the type species of the genus Holothuria
and is placed in the subgenus Holothuria, making its full name Holothuria tubulosa.
Holothuria tubulosa is found in temperate regions of the eastern Atlantic Ocean as
far north as the Bay of Biscay and in the Mediterranean Sea, where it is abundant. It
is found on sandy seabeds, among seagrass (Posidonia spp.) and on muddy rocks to
a depth of about 100 m (Wikipedia 2020d).
4.3.1.6 Nutritional Composition of Sea Cucumber
The body wall is the sea cucumber’s major edible (and medicinal) organ. It consists
mainly of epithelial and dermal connective tissues. Among the general biochemical
components (related to nutrition), moisture content stands the highest, followed by
crude protein, ash content and total carbohydrate, and finally crude fat content. The
body wall of sea cucumber also contains polysaccharides, lipids, and collagen (Xia
and Wang 2015).
Proteins are the most abundant chemical components and can account 40–60 wt%
of sea cucumber dry matter (Wen et al. 2010). Most sea cucumber proteins are in
collagen form. Collagens, which constitute the body tissues of sea cucumbers, contribute to the flavours of sea cucumbers as the main structural proteins (Liu
et al. 2017).
4 Echinoderms