Reproduction of Sea Cucumber

In this video

Riproduzione Oloturia Reproduction Sea Cucumber intotheblue.it
Riproduzione Oloturia Reproduction Sea Cucumber intotheblue.it

The video shows us how Sea Cucumbers reproduce. It is a fairly common phenomenon but difficult to document because it is rather fast, and therefore you must be in the right place at the right time. We found it in the summer in July in the stretch of coast that goes from Livorno to Castiglioncello in a couple of meters of water, in a mixed seabed between rock and sand. Riproduzione Oloturia Reproduction Sea Cucumber intotheblue.it Reproduction of Sea Cucumber Oloturia intotheblue.it

We have filmed the most common Sea Cucumber , Holothuria tubulosa of the Mediterranean Sea. The sample of the video is rather large, almost a meter long, and we can see it being reproduced. In the video we see him expel eggs and sperm in a few seconds, and the curious thing is that within a few meters we found several specimens that were probably doing the same act in sync. Riproduzione Oloturia Reproduction Sea Cucumber intotheblue.it

Reproduction Sea Cucumber intotheblue.it
Riproduzione Oloturia intotheblue.it

Sea cucumbers can reproduce in sexual or asexual form. Sexual reproduction is the most common, but it is not a too intimate reproductive system. The animal releases both the eggs and the sperm into the water and, if they meet, fertilization takes place. For this reproductive method to be effective, the population of sea cucumbers must count many individuals. In fact, many ocean beds are home to large colonies of these ancient animals.

Riproduzione Oloturia Reproduction Sea Cucumber intotheblue.it
Riproduzione Oloturia Reproduction Sea Cucumber intotheblue.it

Sea cucumber (Holothuria tubulosa (Gmelin, 1788)), due to the similarity of the appearance of this animal with a cucumber, is the most common species among Mediterranean sea cucumbers.

Distribution and habitat

Mediterranean Sea and Eastern Atlantic Ocean. It lives on all the bottoms but prefers the detrital ones and the phanerogam prairies. It feeds itself by ingesting enormous quantities of sand and mud from which it gets its nourishment.

Description

It shows an elongated cylindrical body with various irregularly more or less developed protuberances that end with a papilla. It can reach 30 cm in length. The dorsal coloring is dark: brown, or brown-reddish or brown-purple. The ventral coloring is much lighter: light brown or yellowish.

http://www.nationalgeographic.it/natura/animali/2010/04/17/news/sea_cucumber-1984/

https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holothuria_tubulosa

 

Riproduzione Oloturia Reproduction Sea Cucumber intotheblue.it
Riproduzione Oloturia Reproduction Sea Cucumber intotheblue.it

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