A rare deep-sea basket star, Astrocyclus caecilia. This species is one of several hundred echinoderms that have been collected at depths between 300 and 3,000 feet in the Caribbean Sea.

R & C | ECHINODERMS

STAFF

• Gordon L. Hendler, Curator
• Cathy L. Groves, Curatorial Assistant

COLLECTION

The Phylum Echinodermata is one of the four most abundant and ecologically important groups of marine invertebrates; it includes sea stars, sea urchins, sea cucumbers, brittle stars, basket stars and featherstars. Numerous species are of commercial value or are used to monitor seawater pollution.

Within our collection all living classes are covered, including Asteroidea, Crinoidea, Echinoidea, Holothuroidea, and Ophiuroidea. Our strongest emphasis is on the Pacific and Caribbean regions.

Special Strengths

• Worldwide coverage and extensive holdings sustain wide-ranging systematic, morpho-logical, ecological, and evolutionary studies.
• Unparalleled in breadth of coverage of eastern Pacific and selected western Pacific habi-tats, both in terms of depth (intertidal to abyssal) and volume of readily available material; the museum’s holdings of eastern Pacific echinoderms are the most extensive in the world.
• Significant representation of the Caribbean; its fauna and habitats.
• Collection has been studied by the most renowned authorities on echinoderm biology, has provided the basis for classic monographic publications, and continues to support impor-tant research.
• Numerous government-sponsored environmental survey collections carried out over the past 40 years in a range of depths from Canada to Mexico.
• Holdings include irreplaceable specimens of historical significance and incorporate the former echinoderm collections of the San Diego Natural History Museum and the Allan Hancock Atlantic and Pacific Expeditions.