Benthodytes is a genus of sea cucumbers in the family Psychropotidae.[3]
Discovery
This group of sea cucumbers was first described by scientists aboard the H.M.S. Challenger during its 1873-1876 voyage.[4] Théel described the genus: "Body more or less depressed, with the anterior part of its brim rather large. Mouth ventral, at a greater distance from the foremost extremity of the body. Anus posterior, dorsal, usually almost terminal. Tentacles (?) twelve to twenty. Pedicels arranged in a single row round the brim of the body and in a double one along the odd ambulacrum. The dorsal surface seldom naked, commonly with a greater or smaller number of retractile or non-retractile, more or less inconsiderable processes, arranged in a single row all along each ambulacrum or in an irregular double row, or scattered over the lateral interambulacrae."[4] Théel also documented the details of species B. typica, B. sanguinolenta, and B. abyssicola.[4]
Anatomy
Among Psychropotidae, Benthodytes (synonym Benthodites) are characterized by "soft retractile tentacles, circum-oral or post-oral papillae and the absence of an unpaired dorsal appendage."[5]
Significance
Several species of Benthodytes are good indicators of the potential impacts of deep-sea mining and have been the subject of multiple studies.[6][7] Identification of distinct species is most often based on photography, since the delicate anatomy of the sea cucumbers is often damaged in the process of sampling.[6] Genome sequencing technology is paving the way for more accurate accounts of the evolution and taxonomy of Benthodytes species, starting with B. rosea and B. typica.[8] Additionally, the mitochondrial genome of B. marianensis has been sequenced and was found to contain a novel gene arrangement among holothurians that could be an adaptation allowing for survival at great depths.[9]
Species
Several species included in the genus Benthodytes have been reclassified using different nomenclature.[10] This list is subject to change as phylogenetic data clarifies the relationships among difficult-to-identify creatures whose soft appendages are often lost in the process of sample collection.[11]
References
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^ Théel, H. (1882). Report on the Holothuroidea dredged by H.M.S. 'Challenger' during the years 1873-76. Part i. Report on the Scientific Results of the Voyage of H.M.S. Challenger during the years 1873–1876. Zoology. 4 (part 13): i-ix, 1-176, pl. 1-46., available online at http://19thcenturyscience.org/HMSC/HMSC-Reports/Zool-13/htm/doc.html
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^ Glover A, Wiklund H, Rabone M, Amon D, Smith C, O'Hara T, Mah C, Dahlgren T (2016) Abyssal fauna of the UK-1 polymetallic nodule exploration claim, Clarion-Clipperton Zone, central Pacific Ocean: Echinodermata. Biodiversity Data Journal 4: e7251. https://doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.4.e7251
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^ "Benthodytes". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species.
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^ a b c Théel, H. (1882). Report on the Holothuroidea dredged by H.M.S. 'Challenger' during the years 1873-76. Part i. Report on the Scientific Results of the Voyage of H.M.S. Challenger during the years 1873–1876. Zoology. 4 (part 13): i-ix, 1-176, pl. 1-46., available online at http://19thcenturyscience.org/HMSC/HMSC-Reports/Zool-13/htm/doc.htm
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^ "WoRMS - World Register of Marine Species - Benthodytes Théel, 1882". www.marinespecies.org. Retrieved 2020-10-23.
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^ a b Rodrigues, Nimi; Sharma, Rahul; Nagender Nath, B (2001-01-01). "Impact of benthic disturbance on megafauna in Central Indian Basin". Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography. Indian Deep-sea Environment Experiment (INDEX). 48 (16): 3411–3426. Bibcode:2001DSRII..48.3411R. doi:10.1016/S0967-0645(01)00049-2. ISSN 0967-0645.
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^ Amon D J, Ziegler A F, Kremenetskaia A, Mah C L, Mooi R, O’Hara T, Pawson D L, Roux M, Smith C R. Megafauna of the UKSRL exploration contract area and eastern Clarion-Clipperton Zone in the Pacific Ocean: Echinodermata. Biodiversity Data Journal. May 2017; 5. e11794. 10.3897/BDJ.5.e11794.
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^ Bisol P M, Costa R, Sibuet M. Ecological and genetical survey on two deep-sea holothurians: Benthogone rosea and Benthodytes typica. Marine Ecology Progress Series. December 1983; 15 (3): 275-281. DOI: 10.3354/meps015275.
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^ Mu, Wendan; Liu, Jun; Zhang, Haibin (2018-11-30). Ruggeri, Paolo (ed.). "Complete mitochondrial genome of Benthodytes marianensis (Holothuroidea: Elasipodida: Psychropotidae): Insight into deep sea adaptation in the sea cucumber". PLOS ONE. 13 (11): e0208051. Bibcode:2018PLoSO..1308051M. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0208051. ISSN 1932-6203. PMC 6267960. PMID 30500836.
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^ "WoRMS - World Register of Marine Species - Benthodytes Théel, 1882". www.marinespecies.org. Retrieved 2020-10-23.
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^ Bluhm, Hartmut; Gebruk, Andrej (1999). "Holothuroidea (Echinodermata) of the Peru Basin - Ecological and Taxonomic Remarks Based on Underwater Images". Marine Ecology. 20 (2): 167–195. Bibcode:1999MarEc..20..167B. doi:10.1046/j.1439-0485.1999.00072.x. ISSN 1439-0485.
