A beach walk in southern California turned into an impromptu marine biology lesson after one Reddit user shared a photo of a mysterious, slime-covered creature they spotted along the shore. In a post ...

Few animals seem less animal-like than sea cucumbers. The long, slender beings often appear motionless like the vegetable they resemble as they bask on the seafloor. They lack a brain, eyes or obvious ...

Sea cucumbers are marine invertebrates that live on the seafloor. They're named for their unusual oblong shape that resembles a fat cucumber. Although people occasionally eat sea cucumbers, these ...

The defense mechanisms animals use to evade or fight off predators can be both bizarre and fascinating. Some use camouflage or mimicry, while others have protective armor. Sea cucumbers, however, use ...

Sea cucumbers, a diverse group of echinoderms, have emerged as a focal point of marine biomedical research due to their rich reservoir of bioactive compounds. Their body tissues and extracts contain a ...

From their bizarre name to their blobby worm shape to the fact that its anus is also a mouth, sea cucumbers are some of the most outlandish things in the ocean. There are more than 1,700 species in ...

Sea cucumbers (Apostichopus japonicus) have been slowly disappearing from ocean floors over the last few decades, mostly due to overfishing for food and medicinal purposes. Despite their name, sea ...

MAFIA ISLAND, Tanzania — His white beard streaming in the turquoise waters, Waziri Mpogo dives under the surface a few hundred meters offshore of a palm-lined beach. Holding his breath, he heads for ...

The headless chicken monster is a type of sea cucumber. Many animals have acquired silly nicknames from amused humans. Raccoons are trash pandas. Snakes are danger noodles. Ocean dwellers aren’t ...

OXFORD, Miss. – Sea cucumbers are the ocean’s janitors, cleaning the seabed and recycling nutrients back into the water. But this humble marine invertebrate could also hold the key to stopping the ...

These spiny or slimy ocean creatures display an astonishing diversity of appearances, behaviors and lifestyles—and many are increasingly threatened Katarina Zimmer, Knowable Magazine Sea cucumbers ...