October Video of the Month - Sea Cucumber

Many students taking part in our field courses fall in love with the slippery, slimy Orange-Footed Sea Cucumbers (Cucumaria frondosa) that we pull from the floor of the ocean.  However, the students often see the sea cucumbers out of water at which point they have gone into "football" form and retracted their tube feet and feeding tentacles.

In the following video note the feeding tentacles that are coated in mucus to collect tiny organic material in the water including plankton.  Each tentacle is then taken into the mouth to remove the food.