Diversity of the Holothuroid Fauna (Echinodermata) at La Réunion (Western Indian Ocean)
type: Dataset
description: Echinoderms are conspicuous components of the tropical fauna and play important roles in the functioning of coral reefs. However, their diversity is not as well documented as that of other conspicuous reef organisms such as corals or fish. We review current knowledge of the diversity of the class Holothuroidea at La Réunion. Several recent initiatives that include MASMA (Conand & Muthiga 2007) and BIOTAS projects have considerably augmented the number of species recorded for the island. As a result of these surveys, the recorded holothuroid fauna has doubled. Thirty-seven species are presently recognized, 18 of which are new records for the island. The order Aspidochirotida, which includes the largest and most conspicuous holothuroids, is the most diverse, with 28 species. Seven species of Apodida and two species of Dendrochirotida constitute the balance of the fauna. These latter groups may prove more diverse with further investigation. The island’s holothuroid fauna is compared with data available from other areas of the Western Indian Ocean and the Indo-west Pacific to evaluate their biogeographic relationships. Keywords : Holothuroidea, Echinodermata, diversity, abundance, Western Indian Ocean.
landing page: 0856-860X
keyword: abundance
keyword: diversity
keyword: echinodermata
keyword: holothuroidea
keyword: infoeu-reposemanticsarticle
keyword: journal-articles
keyword: sdebeenvironmental-sciencesbiodiversity-and-ecology
keyword: western-indian-ocean
issued: 2026-05-10T01:38:05.902574
modified: 2026-05-10T01:38:05.902578
language: en
contact point: Organization
  fn: CCSD

test_moissonnage_selune
type: Agent

Diversity of the Holothuroid Fauna (Echinodermata) at La Réunion (Western Indian Ocean)
type: Distribution
format: HTML
access URL: https://hal.science/hal-00852816
issued: 2026-05-10T01:38:05.908949
modified: 2026-05-10T01:38:05.892338