Colochirus+quadrangularis

**General Overview:** The thorny sea cucumber is small and colorful with short body. It may be anywhere between 6 to 10 cm long. It has a distinct upperside and underside. The upperside has soft, harmless thorn-shaped projections while its underside has three rows of short tube feet. Although its name remind us of a plant, this sea cucumber can actually move about with its feet. They may burrow into the sand or cling to tubeworm tubes and hard surfaces. Sea cucumbers have bodies made of mutable connective tissue that can quickly change from soft to hard. This adaptation is helpful in defense from predators and to squeeze through narrow cracks. Their food source is plankton and organic particles. They have feeding tentacles around the mouth that can be completely withdrawn into the body, usually one at a time. **Reproduction:**  Thorny sea cucumbers have separate genders. Their larva, first free-swimming, undergo metamorphosis to settle down as adults. **Habitat:**  It is generally found along the sand and seagrass. It is distributed along Northern shores. **Interesting Facts:** Sea Cucumber as a Source of Food and Medicine in China
 * //Colochirus quadrangularis// ** (Thorny Sea Cucumber)
 * Sea cucumbers may have transparent shrimps on their feeding tentacles. In this commercialistic relationship, the shrimps benefit by receiving transportation while sea cucumbers are unaffected.
 * Sea cucumbers may "vomit" their internal organs, including the digestive system and reproductive system, to repel predators.
 * Sea cucumbers are called "ginseng" of the sea and is a source of food for Chinese for centuries. The Chinese value them for their high nutritional value (high protein). They are also used as medicine and disease prevention.

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