Molpadida: taxon details and analytics

Domain
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Echinodermata
Class
Holothuroidea
Order
Molpadida
Family
Genus
Species
Scientific Name
Molpadida

Summary description from Wikipedia:

Molpadida

Molpadida is an order of sea cucumbers. The body shape is fusiform and unlike other sea cucumbers, their hind body is narrowed to form a distinct tail. Although they possess tentacles around the mouth derived from the water vascular system, they have no true tube feet, and are therefore believed to be related to the Apodida.

They have fifteen much branched tentacles and a stout body. They have tentacle ampullae and respiratory trees present, a kind of water lung attached to the cloaca. The ossicles, minute calcareous plates embedded in the skin and characteristic of each species, take the form of tables, anchors, fusiform rods and perforated plates but never wheels.

Like their relatives, they are adapted for burrowing into soft sediment, but they are relatively sedentary, rarely moving once they have excavated their burrow. Their burrow is U-shaped, with the animal's tentacles projecting from one end.

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Molpadida in languages:

Japanese
隠足目

Images from inaturalist.org observations:

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Molpadida
©Mayur Fulmali, some rights reserved (CC-BY-NC)
Molpadida
©Mayur Fulmali, some rights reserved (CC-BY-NC)
Molpadida
©tomas_cedhagen, some rights reserved (CC-BY-NC)
Molpadida
©tomas_cedhagen, some rights reserved (CC-BY-NC)
Molpadida
©tomas_cedhagen, some rights reserved (CC-BY-NC)