Brown sea cucumber genome boosts Galápagos conservation
In a scientific breakthrough that could transform efforts to protect and manage the recovery of one of the most endangered species in the Eastern Tropical Pacific, researchers have finally completed the first full genetic map of the brown sea cucumber.
It’s a study – now published in the scientific journal, Scientific Data – that provides the first high-quality genome for an endangered sea cucumber anywhere in the world. Try that on for size if you thought the brown sea cucumber (Isostichopus fuscus) was anything short of charismatic.
The research was led by Jaime Ortiz, a Galápagos native and PhD candidate at Cornell University, in collaboration with the Charles Darwin Foundation (CDF) and supported by a Revive & Restore grant. By decoding the species’ complete DNA, the team has created a powerful tool for conservation, offering unprecedented insight into genetic diversity, adaptation, and resilience.
“For me, this work is deeply personal,” Ortiz said. “By assembling the genome of the brown sea cucumber, we now have a detailed picture of how this species functions at a molecular level. This allows us to study genetic diversity, adaptation, and resilience in ways that were simply not possible before, and to use that knowledge to support long-term conservation, for the benefit of both nature and the people who depend on it.”
The brown sea cucumber plays a critical role in marine ecosystems, recycling nutrients on the seafloor and supporting coral reef health. It is also economically important, sustaining a global market worth around US $3 million annually, most of which is exported to China. Decades of overfishing along the Pacific coast – from Mexico to Ecuador – have caused populations to collapse across much of its range.
In the Galápagos, wild brown sea cucumbers are legally harvested under a strictly regulated artisanal fishing system. Management decisions are guided by science and continuous monitoring, with fishing only allowed when populations have recovered sufficiently.
