This is how we like to start off our week! We are proud to announce that another new aquacultured species is being added to the Quality Marine stock list! Today we are releasing our first ever aquacultured Sea Cucumber available here; the aquacultured Caledonian Sand Sifting Cucumber (Holothuria fuscopunctata).
The Caledonian Sand Sifting Cucumber has a widespread range within the Indian and Pacific Oceans; from Mariana Islands to Palau and New Caledonia. They commonly inhabit reef slopes, lagoons and sea grass beds at depths of up to 25 meters. They are primarily detritus and deposit feeders. They are commercially harvested as a traditional food in some East Asian cultures.
Although not incredibly common up to this point, they have been utilized in aquariums because of their diet of detritus and tendency to aerate and clean sand beds while searching for food. H. fuscopunctata will spend most of its time beneath the sand bed, but will also be seen roaming the aquarium at night. This diet and lifestyle mean that they prefer a moderately deep, small to medium grained sand bed where they can search for organic foods. Like all invertebrates, care and time should be taken during acclimation. They are highly sensitive to nitrates and copper medications. These H. fuscopunctata are accustomed to captive conditions, eating processed foods and conditioned to human interaction.
We are very proud of our extensive and ever growing list of aquacultured specimens. As part of Quality Marine's continuing effort to promote sustainability and responsibility in the aquarium trade, we're very excited to share with you the availability of our very first cultured Sea Cucumber.