Deep-Sea Holothurians -mid-water species (unidentified) - peniodone

Deep-Sea Holothurians -Peniagone sp

Deep-Sea Holothurians

Deep-Sea Holothurians -Abyssocucumis abyssorum

Deep-Sea Holothurians -Holothuian sp. 1

Deep-Sea Holothurians -Holothuian sp. 2

Deep-Sea Holothurians -Psolus squamatus

Deep-Sea Holothurians -Pannychia moseleyi

Deep-Sea Holothurians -Pannychia moseleyi

Deep-Sea Holothurians -Oneirophanta mutabilis

Deep-Sea Holothurians -Scotoplanes globosa

Deep-Sea Holothurians -Paelopadites confundens

Deep-Sea Holothurians -Parastichopus californicus

Deep-Sea Holothurians -Parastichopus leukothele

Deep-Sea Holothurians -Parastichopus johnsoni

food

This deep-ocean sea cucumber, Scotoplanes globosa, is sometimes called a "sea pig" because its resemblance to terrestrial pigs. Like many sea cucumbers, Scotoplanes eat seafloor mud, along with small animals and microbes that live in the mud. Scotoplanes are typically 10-15 cm (four to six inches) long. They move slowly but gracefully on their stubby "legs," and sometimes form large "herds" that migrate across the muddy seafloor or congregate around sources of food. MBARI research suggests that populations of Scotoplanes can change dramatically over time depending on how much food sinks down to the deep seafloor

Deep-Sea Holothurians -Psychropotes longicauda

One common sea cucumber at Station M is this beautifully colored species called Psychropotes longicauda, which grows from 75 to 150 mm (three to six inches) long. The head of the animal is at leftImage:(c) 2002 MBARI-http://www.mbari.org/news/homepage/2007/deepchange.html .

Deep-Sea Ophiuroids-Amphiodia urtica (dorsal)

Deep-Sea Ophiuroids -Amphiodia urtica (ventral)

Deep-Sea Ophiuroids -Ophiura leptoctenia (dorsal)

Deep-Sea Ophiuroids -Ophiura leptoctenia (ventral)

Deep-Sea Ophiuroids -Ophiuroid sp. 1 (dorsal)

Deep-Sea Ophiuroids -Ophiuroid sp. 1 (ventral)

Deep-Sea Ophiuroids

Deep-Sea Ophiuroids

Deep-Sea Ophiuroids

Deep-Sea Ophiuroids

Deep-Sea Echinoids - Aporocidaris milleri

Deep-Sea Echinoids -Cystechinus loveni

Deep-Sea Echinoids -Echinocrepis rostrata

Deep-Sea Echinoids -Cystocrepis setigera

Deep-Sea Echinoids -Cystocrepis setigera

TDeep-Sea Echinoids -romikosoma panamense

Deep-Sea Echinoids -?Tromikosoma sp.

Deep-sea heart urchins such as this Echinocrepis rostrata showed less dramatic population changes than did the sea cucumbers at Station M. However, their increases in abundance generally coincided with decreases in the sizes of individual animals. Ruhl hypothesizes that this may reflect "pulses" of young animals that arrived as larvae and grew up in the study area,Image:(c) 2002 MBARI