Cucumaria Miniata

Cucumaria miniata is a bright orange sea cucumber, with an elaborate array of 10 finely branched oral tentacles. Several branchlets off the main axis of each tentacle begin about one-third of the way up from the base, and the branchlets have additional branchings, leading to an incredibly large surface area for capturing organic detritus and planktonic prey.

The main body, which is elongate and smooth, has five rows of tube feet, each 4-6 tube feet across. The base and length of each tube foot is often a darker orange, verging on brown. However the tips of the tube feet tend to be very pale orange, almost white.

Distinctive Features:

The bright orange color of this cucumber differentiates it from all other species along the central California coast. The tube feet are aligned in five distinct rows along the main body axis.

Size:

Length: to 20 cm
Body diameter: 3-5 cm
Tentacular diameter: to 15 cm