These elongate, flaccid sea cucumbers are common in lagoon Halimeda patches and are also sometimes found under rocks on lagoon and pinnacle reefs. A large, dark-colored form was common in a salt water pond on Ninni Island.
Like many other sea cucumber species, Synapta maculata sometimes carries hitchhikers, a commensal worm that is probably Gastrolepidia clavigera.
The large dark variety below was very common in a small (roughly 40m diameter), shallow (typically 1m depth) salt water pond on the island of Ninni in Kwajalein Atoll. While the pond had no visible surface connection to the ocean, its level would rise and fall with the tides, although possibly delayed by the time it took for water to seep in and out through the sand.
Created 22 June 2018
Updated 24 May 2020