Holothuroidea

Extract

Among the living echinoderms, holothurians are generally regarded as “poor relations” of the other groups. The color and symmetry of sea-stars and the complexity of echinoids usually elicit expressions of admiration from casual observers; the reactions to holothurians usually involves a considerable degree of revulsion. The generally soft-bodied holothurians, with their reduced skeleton and leathery to gelatinous body walls, are consequently less well known than many other echinoderm groups.