Perhaps one of the most overlooked underwater species is sea cucumber. This tiny creature, with its flexible sausage-shaped body and tentacles surrounding its mouth and feet, has one of the most important contributions in the fisheries sector ecologically and economically speaking.
Two-way importance
Considered as “earthworm of the sea floor”, sea cucumber feeds on deposits. As it filters the particles from water, it reduces the excess organic matter in the water. When it buries itself into the sea floor, it helps put the oxygen into the sediment so that other organisms can live well beneath the surface.
For people living in the coastal areas, sea cucumber is an important source of livelihood. One of its most common forms of processed product is known in the international market as trepangor beche-de-mer. These dried sea cucumbers are considered high-value export commodities. The Philippines, one of the major trepangexporters, caters to the demand of Asian countries including Taiwan, Hongkong, Korea, Japan, Singapore, and China. Traditionally, these countries use sea cucumbers in the preparation of various dishes such as soups and noodles. But due to nutritional and medicinal claims, sea cucumbers are now being consumed more for its tonic value rather than its taste. Dried sea cucumbers are rich in protein and are regarded to reduce arthritic pain, treat high blood pressure, and other illnesses.
Because of the increasing demand for sea cucumbers, yet lack of management measures that will ensure its conservation, the sea cucumber industry is facing the problem of overexploitation which prompts an impending decline in their population. Heavily fishing can result to their extinction which would impact the welfare not only of the people but of the environment as well.
A sought-after sea cucumber species
In the country, Stichopus horrens is considered as one of the sought-after species and is among the top five sea cucumber species that is providing income to the fisherfolk. Locally known as hanginan, S. horrens is a nocturnal species and remains hidden in the reefs during the day. In China and Malaysia, such species is used in the nutraceutical industry and as traditional medicine. Its coelomic fluid called gamatis believed to possess medicinal properties, thereby often processed into products such as gamatoil, gamatwater, balm, toothpaste, and soap. In Mindanao, hanginan is a popular delicacy among the Muslims prepared especially during the Ramadan.
Efforts to mass culture a commercially important species
Given the vast diversity of sea cucumbers, there is a need to develop culture techniques to explore more opportunities for other commercially important species such as S. horrens. Currently, only the Holothuria scabra has available technologies for mass culture which was initiated by the University of the Philippines Diliman-Marine Science Institute (UP-MSI) in 2000.
This prompted Dr. Marie Antonette Meñez of UP-MS