???theres a hole in the cucumber

bigyb

bigyb

Member
I have no idea what is going on with my sea cucumber. This morning I woke up to find that he has a hole in the side of him? :notsure: Around the hole is skin is all white. He still moves around and it dosn't seem to be getting bigger. Dose anyone know what it could be or what to do about it.
Thanks for all your help and happy holidays!!
 
beth

beth

Administrator
Staff member
He likely was bitten by someone in the tank.
I'll move your topic over to the Reef Forum where it will get more invert related views.
 
birdmom

birdmom

Member
Originally Posted by ophiura
It is also possible it is splitting.
:thinking: :thinking:
What species split?? I guess I missed something.. :notsure:
Birdmom
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
Without knowing more, such as your specific tank parameters, inhabitants, how long you have had the cucumber, what substrate you have, etc....it is impossible to really know.
Watch your water paraemeters, but otherwise, I would just leave it.
 
birdmom

birdmom

Member
Originally Posted by ophiura
Without knowing more, such as your specific tank parameters, inhabitants, how long you have had the cucumber, what substrate you have, etc....it is impossible to really know.
Watch your water paraemeters, but otherwise, I would just leave it.
ophiura... (is the name misspelled intentionally??) Ophiuroidea
To: Brittle Star..........
Could you please provide the new & inexperienced people on this board with a reliable history of your credentals??
(Something other than your Google Expertise & failed employment)
I am a bit weary reading your "Canned response of"
(Without knowing more, such as your specific tank parameters..ect......)
Please... Tell me more about how Holothuroidea "Split"????
Do they MOLT As Well????
:jumping: :jumping:
Enough Said..............
 
X

xnikki118x

Guest
Originally Posted by birdmom
ophiura... (is the name misspelled intentionally??) Ophiuroidea
To: Brittle Star..........
Could you please provide the new & inexperienced people on this board with a reliable history of your credentals??
(Something other than your Google Expertise & failed employment)
I am a bit weary reading your "Canned response of"
(Without knowing more, such as your specific tank parameters..ect......)
Please... Tell me more about how Holothuroidea "Split"????
Do they MOLT As Well????
:jumping: :jumping:
Enough Said..............
Who do you think you are? Really. Ophiura is nothing but kind and helpful to everyone on this forum.
Also, I'm a "Google Expert" as well, and I found this:
Holothuroid species reproduce both sexually and asexually. Asexual reproduction is common among small individuals within a population. Asexual reproducing populations have a highly clonal structure with the majority of individuals being genetically identical. Among asexually reproducing sea cucumbers transverse fission is popular, where the division of the body is followed by the regeneration of each section into a new individual.

Also, I had a sea cucumber a long time ago. Know how I got it? My buddy had a single one and IT SPLIT and he gave me one.
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
Originally Posted by birdmom
ophiura... (is the name misspelled intentionally??) Ophiuroidea
To: Brittle Star..........
Could you please provide the new & inexperienced people on this board with a reliable history of your credentals??
(Something other than your Google Expertise & failed employment)
I am a bit weary reading your "Canned response of"
(Without knowing more, such as your specific tank parameters..ect......)
Please... Tell me more about how Holothuroidea "Split"????
Do they MOLT As Well????
:jumping: :jumping:
Enough Said..............

Wow, very nice.
The name is NOT mispelled. Ophiura is a GENUS of ophiuroids (Echinodermata: Ophiuroidea) in the family Ophiuridae (subfamily Ophiurinae) the sister family of the Ophiolepididae (formerly subfamily Ophiolepidinae in the Ophiuridae) which I worked on for my dissertation. Of course I strongly disagree with raising of the Ophiolepidinae to a family rank, but that is not a discussion for now.
Even a canned Google search would have told you that.
I started working on brittlestars in 1992 as an undergraduate in Washington DC, and did my undergraduate and graduate research at the US National Museum of Natural History, the Smithsonian Institution, until 2001. I was funded during this period by an NSF doctoral dissertation improvement grant entitled "A cladistic analysis of deep-sea ophiuroid
genera Ophiomusium Lyman and Ophiophalma Clark and their relations within the Ophiolepididae (Echinodermata: Ophiuroidea)."
I did not complete my dissertation because I got married, and learned there are more important things than a piece of paper with "PhD" on it.
My advisors included Dr. David Pawson, a specialist in sea cucumbers at the USNM; Dr. Diana Lipscomb, a ciliate specialist at the George Washington University and several others.
I spent quite a bit of time teaching during grad school, including a tropical marine biology class in the Bahamas. I taught fish morphology, ecology and behavior.
After leaving and moving to Houston with my husband, I took a quick job in an LFS where I worked for 15 months. I learned a tremendous amount there, the ins and outs, the worst case scenarios.
I then took a job as an aquarist at the Downtown Aquarium in Houston Texas, where I cared for a wide array of tanks (fresh, cold salt, tropical, predator, etc, etc ,etc). I worked there also for about 15 months before getting a job out of the industry, but one which pays bills.
BTW, I do not consider myself to be "above" hourly, minimum wage jobs because of my education. That is due to my work ethic and how I was raised, not what is learned at university.
Anyone who works on echinoderms know that they are highly susceptible to problems with water quality. It has been proposed that many have issues adapting to synthetic salt mixes, quite possibly one of the reasons that sea urchin larvae are often used as test animals in such experiments.
Because I am no longer active in the research field, I spend time HELPING other hobbyists and sharing my knowledge on this board, a few others now and then, and through my "The Ophiuroidea" website (woefully not up to date though). Unfortunately, this often means unpleasant questions, and now and then dealing with unpleasant people. But overall I value those participating on this board, and feel that in general I can help in some small way.
Thank you for your concern in the overall quality of the information provided on this board. I would like to ask you what your qualifications are to provide any information...but you know what? I don't care. I don't care if someone only searches google and share info. What, exactly, is WRONG with that?
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
BTW, maybe try out some "canned" google searches. Try something like holothuroidea asexual reproduction.
First one:
Titre du document / Document title
Seasonality of asexual reproduction in Holothuria (Halodeima) atra, H. (H.) edulis and Stichopus chloronotus (Holothuroidea: Aspidochirotida) on the Great Barrier Reef
Auteur(s) / Author(s)
UTHICKE S. (1) ;
Affiliation(s) du ou des auteurs / Author(s) Affiliation(s)
(1) Institut für Hydrobiologie und Fischereiwissenschaft, Zeiseweg 9, 22765 Hamburg, ALLEMAGNE
Résumé / Abstract
Asexual reproduction by fission was monitored for 18 mo in populations of Holothuria (Halodeima) atra, H. (H.) edulis and Stichopus chloronotus on three nearshore fringing reefs and one midshelf reef in the Great Barrier Reef. Fission in S. chloronotus occurred exclusively between March and October, with a peak value of 31% recently divided individuals in one population in July. H. atra showed a similar pattern, with maxima of between 16 and 26% from May to July. In H. edulis, asexual reproduction occurred only between March and July, with a maximum of 17% recently divided individuals in March. Fission rates of H. atra and S. chloronotus in winter were significantly higher than in all other seasons. For H. atra, at least 76% of all individuals at Fantome Island were estimated to undergo fission per year, whereas only 9% undergo fission on the midshelf reef. Highest annual fission rates (43%) for S. chloronotus were found in a dense population on Great Palm Island. The lower-density midshelf reef population exhibited comparatively lower annual fission rates (19%). About 24% of H. edulis undergo fission each year. Annual fission rate and population density were positively correlated in the four populations of S. chloronotus and H. atra studied.
Revue / Journal Title
Marine biology (Mar. biol.) ISSN 0025-3162 CODEN MBIOAJ
 
birdmom

birdmom

Member
Originally Posted by ophiura
Wow, very nice.
The name is NOT mispelled. Ophiura is a GENUS of ophiuroids (Echinodermata: Ophiuroidea) in the family Ophiuridae (subfamily Ophiurinae) the sister family of the Ophiolepididae (formerly subfamily Ophiolepidinae in the Ophiuridae) which I worked on for my dissertation. Of course I strongly disagree with raising of the Ophiolepidinae to a family rank, but that is not a discussion for now.
Even a canned Google search would have told you that.
I started working on brittlestars in 1992 as an undergraduate in Washington DC, and did my undergraduate and graduate research at the US National Museum of Natural History, the Smithsonian Institution, until 2001. I was funded during this period by an NSF doctoral dissertation improvement grant entitled "A cladistic analysis of deep-sea ophiuroid
genera Ophiomusium Lyman and Ophiophalma Clark and their relations within the Ophiolepididae (Echinodermata: Ophiuroidea)."
I did not complete my dissertation because I got married, and learned there are more important things than a piece of paper with "PhD" on it.
My advisors included Dr. David Pawson, a specialist in sea cucumbers at the USNM; Dr. Diana Lipscomb, a ciliate specialist at the George Washington University and several others.
I spent quite a bit of time teaching during grad school, including a tropical marine biology class in the Bahamas. I taught fish morphology, ecology and behavior.
After leaving and moving to Houston with my husband, I took a quick job in an LFS where I worked for 15 months. I learned a tremendous amount there, the ins and outs, the worst case scenarios.
I then took a job as an aquarist at the Downtown Aquarium in Houston Texas, where I cared for a wide array of tanks (fresh, cold salt, tropical, predator, etc, etc ,etc). I worked there also for about 15 months before getting a job out of the industry, but one which pays bills.
BTW, I do not consider myself to be "above" hourly, minimum wage jobs because of my education. That is due to my work ethic and how I was raised, not what is learned at university.
Anyone who works on echinoderms know that they are highly susceptible to problems with water quality. It has been proposed that many have issues adapting to synthetic salt mixes, quite possibly one of the reasons that sea urchin larvae are often used as test animals in such experiments.
Because I am no longer active in the research field, I spend time HELPING other hobbyists and sharing my knowledge on this board, a few others now and then, and through my "The Ophiuroidea" website (woefully not up to date though). Unfortunately, this often means unpleasant questions, and now and then dealing with unpleasant people. But overall I value those participating on this board, and feel that in general I can help in some small way.
Thank you for your concern in the overall quality of the information provided on this board. I would like to ask you what your qualifications are to provide any information...but you know what? I don't care. I don't care if someone only searches google and share info. What, exactly, is WRONG with that?
Umm... Ok... like I said.... your title infers that you are a "brittle star expert"
>to just 1 specific genus??You have even clearly stated your specific expertise above. ??
You also make yourself out to be an advanced specialist in the general field of Echinoderms & claim to be an expert..
That said, I only asked you to clarify "what species split"
I am certain that you know the rarity of the occurrence in the home aquarium & that only a select few have this ability...
I had hoped that you would read my reply & clarify......
That said...I apologize for putting you on the defense....
You really put a little TMI & emotion into this... You know that right????
If not for this thread.... We would be great friends...
Money & a college degree will never feel as good as a Hug & to hear
"I love you mom" from your babies....
(mine are Teens.. but will always be babies to me)
I think you & I might have much in common...
Truce???
HUGS
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
LOL I like the veiled insults with the "truce" request at the end.
But neither of us are idiots, I'm sure of it.

Be ready for more emotion and information, by the way, because I would actually like to answer your questions.
your title infers that you are a "brittle star expert"
to just 1 specific genus??You have even clearly stated your specific expertise above. ??
You also make yourself out to be an advanced specialist in the general field of Echinoderms & claim to be an expert..
Taxonomists typically specialize in a particular family or genus of animals, yet are still able to identify others and are considered experts as a whole in the group. This is common in the field of taxonomy, and applies to all specialists.
Ophiura, BTW, is a huge group...but here it is nothing more than a screen name. I did not work on it at all. It is the shortest and most convenient ophiuroid genus to use as a name. Do you specialize in all species of birds? Just wondering, if you are going to give me a hard time on my screen name.
That said, I only asked you to clarify "what species split" {...}I had hoped that you would read my reply & clarify......
You wrote the first nasty post above and just wanted me to "clarify?" Again, neither of us are idiots.
Perhaps you genuinely wished to know which species split, but it came across as you knowing that none split, stupid google girl Ophiura with the mispelled name, "enough said." It is hard to judge tone, so I try to be open minded, but I think you did a good job of being clear in your insult.
I am certain that you know the rarity of the occurrence in the home aquarium & that only a select few have this ability...
It is, IMO, getting to be more common for cukes to split in captivity as people are providing larger and deeper sand beds and suitable conditions for them.
However, they DO frequently melt and die in response to poor conditions, and it would be a disservice to another hobbyist to not try and rule that out. Which resulted in my "canned" request for parameters and apparently your extreme annoyance.
Which, in fact, we never got. I wonder if it is alive or dead?
You really put a little TMI & emotion into this... You know that right????
I gave too much information? You wanted "A reliable history" of my experience, more than failed employment and my google searches. I gave it. Yet, even with too much information, I still didn't give you enough specifics on my expertise? This is futile, obviously.
Emotion....absolutely. Please do not insult people, and then be surprised when they basically have to defend themselves and are ticked off about it.
If not for this thread.... We would be great friends...
Perhaps, but I'm afraid I don't get that from your messages. I don't enjoy challenging people in this way, and in general I am pleased to learn something new.
Money & a college degree will never feel as good as a Hug & to hear
"I love you mom" from your babies....
Do I mention whether I have kids? Money? You are correct on the college degree, and I would certainly not challenge the love.
But does it make me better, or worse as a person whether I have children, or money, or an education? I would say NO, on all counts.
By all means, I am fine with a "truce."
But I am afraid I will still ask these same questions that annoy you
 
taznut

taznut

Active Member
ophiura- thank you for all the help that you have given me with all my questions throughout the experience of this hobby... this thread is amazing...
even if ophiura is wrong (which i highly doubt) is there a reason to attack her like this??? seeing as how she has 10,000+ posts you can tell she helps a lot, whereas i dont think i have ever seen anything posted by you... i try to answer questions on here and have only 6 months of experience in this field, is this wrong??? most of the people on this site only have experience in saltwater and from reading the above it looks like ophiura has a lot more than that...
 
1journeyman

1journeyman

Active Member
Birdmom, Ophiura's far too nice to say it, so I will.
You revived a dead thread for this??? To call her out??
In addition to that being insane, it's rude and unwelcome behavior. Ophiura, along with the other Mods (I exclude myself from this list as they all seem far more intelligent than I) spend countless hours here answering a host of questions. They have shown, for years, that they love this community and have an amazing wealth of information to share. Do you know as much about Stars as she does?
I'm not sure what set you off this morning, but please don't allow it to happen again.
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
We are very lucky to have your here Ophiura. You have helped hundreds of us, if not thousands, with Starfish and Sea Cucumber Help.
Thank you!
 
birdmom

birdmom

Member
Originally Posted by ophiura
LOL I like the veiled insults with the "truce" request at the end.
But neither of us are idiots, I'm sure of it.

Be ready for more emotion and information, by the way, because I would actually like to answer your questions.
Taxonomists typically specialize in a particular family or genus of animals, yet are still able to identify others and are considered experts as a whole in the group. This is common in the field of taxonomy, and applies to all specialists.
Ophiura, BTW, is a huge group...but here it is nothing more than a screen name. I did not work on it at all. It is the shortest and most convenient ophiuroid genus to use as a name. Do you specialize in all species of birds? Just wondering, if you are going to give me a hard time on my screen name.
You wrote the first nasty post above and just wanted me to "clarify?" Again, neither of us are idiots.
Perhaps you genuinely wished to know which species split, but it came across as you knowing that none split, stupid google girl Ophiura with the mispelled name, "enough said." It is hard to judge tone, so I try to be open minded, but I think you did a good job of being clear in your insult.
It is, IMO, getting to be more common for cukes to split in captivity as people are providing larger and deeper sand beds and suitable conditions for them.
However, they DO frequently melt and die in response to poor conditions, and it would be a disservice to another hobbyist to not try and rule that out. Which resulted in my "canned" request for parameters and apparently your extreme annoyance.
Which, in fact, we never got. I wonder if it is alive or dead?
I gave too much information? You wanted "A reliable history" of my experience, more than failed employment and my google searches. I gave it. Yet, even with too much information, I still didn't give you enough specifics on my expertise? This is futile, obviously.
Emotion....absolutely. Please do not insult people, and then be surprised when they basically have to defend themselves and are ticked off about it.
Perhaps, but I'm afraid I don't get that from your messages. I don't enjoy challenging people in this way, and in general I am pleased to learn something new.
Do I mention whether I have kids? Money? You are correct on the college degree, and I would certainly not challenge the love.
But does it make me better, or worse as a person whether I have children, or money, or an education? I would say NO, on all counts.
By all means, I am fine with a "truce."
But I am afraid I will still ask these same questions that annoy you

How do you make the "blue hilighted quotes?"
I am not familiar with boards. I tried to go pivate with this.... But I was unable to. That is why a "dead post" was revived.
You still have not provided an answer...
What Species Split??
Ophiura BTY is not a HUGE group...
Are you able to list & define the "huge Group" ???
I am a Bad Google person... however I have been unable to gain information from your previous posts....
I am only able to rely upon your advise & questions asked in previous posts.
I quess that you are an expert???????
((hard to read & understand such nonsensence))
Odd Read???
That said,
Yes, it is possible that I am an expert..
(is it possible to get rod pf spell cjeck??????
Smiles...................
 
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