Yellow sea cucumber - injury? What am i looking at?

[Littlewolf]

I've had my yellow sea cucumber, Calvin, for about 2 months. This morning I noticed he has this...injury? I have no idea what could have caused it beside maybe a hermit crab? I do have a couple blue legs in the tank, but I've never seen anything go after him. To me it looks like it might be his intestines or some other internal organ that is pushing through a hole in his side. It's right by his head. He hasnt been extending to feed today, but I have seen him move a bit. I'm not sure if this is something he will heal from or not. I'd hate for him to die in the tank and nuke everything else in there. Has anyone seen anything like this before?

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

First off, how is the cuke doing?

Second, are you sure that's a hole that's not supposed to be there? - could it be the cuke's mouth/anus?

Third, they are known to practice evisceration (i.e. spitting out their guts) under highly stressful situations/conditions (and the eviscerated guts may be toxic), but this doesn't quite look right to me for that. This honestly looks to me more like it's struggling to swallow an anemone or something.

 

[Littlewolf]

It's definitely an injury in his side. I believe those are it's intestines. I have him in an isolation box s no one picks on him and where I can give him phytoplankton in a more concentrated area. He's been actively feeding since last night, which I take as a good sign. Fingers are crossed, but I'm not getting my hopes up too high.

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

It's definitely an injury in his side. I believe those are it's intestines. I have him in an isolation box s no one picks on him and where I can give him phytoplankton in a more concentrated area. He's been actively feeding since last night, which I take as a good sign. Fingers are crossed, but I'm not getting my hopes up too high.

Wow, yeah from that angle that's really clear. I think you're right that that's some of its innards there. The good news is that sea cucumbers have some very impressive regenerative abilities, so - assuming it's not sick in some way - with enough good food and water quality it should heal.

What phytoplankton are you feeding it?

 

[Cell]

I would consider isolating it so that it does not get picked at by hermits etc

 

[Littlewolf]

Wow, yeah from that angle that's really clear. I think you're right that that's some of its innards there. The good news is that sea cucumbers have some very impressive regenerative abilities, so - assuming it's not sick in some way - with enough good food and water quality it should heal.

What phytoplankton are you feeding it?

Yea, we've decided it may have been our emerald crab that accidentally hurt him. That crab is a bubble algae eating fiend and hasnt bothered anything else in my tank, but Calvin may have just been in his way. I have oceanmagik live phyto that I've been giving him for now since he seems to respond positively to it.

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

Yea, we've decided it may have been our emerald crab that accidentally hurt him. That crab is a bubble algae eating fiend and hasnt bothered anything else in my tank, but Calvin may have just been in his way. I have oceanmagik live phyto that I've been giving him for now since he seems to respond positively to it.

Oceanmagik is a good choice with the Isochrysis, Tetraselmis, and Thalassiosira in it.

A crab is decent suspect - not much tends to bother cukes in our tanks.

 

[Littlewolf]

Oceanmagik is a good choice with the Isochrysis, Tetraselmis, and Thalassiosira in it.

A crab is decent suspect - not much tends to bother cukes in our tanks.

It's what i use to dose in my tank as a whole and I've been very happy with it. Just giving him a little extra in his box for now.

Nothing had bothered him til now. Hes been in the same spot since I added him to the tank; right by the sand bed attached to a rock. I was shocked when I saw this mass of grey tissue sticking out.