Sea cucumbers, marine invertebrates related to starfish and sea urchins, are disappearing from northwest Mexico’s waters, a decline driven by illegal fishing and soaring demand in Asian markets.
The species is typically found at depths of 60 to 80 meters off Baja California, but during breeding season, they migrate closer to shore, making them easy targets for poachers.
Now, scientists and fishing communities hope aquaculture can ease the pressure on wild populations and restore depleted habitats.
Beyond their economic value, sea cucumbers play a crucial ecological role. As they feed, they clean organic matter from the seabed, preventing decay and contamination. Their movement also stirs and oxygenates the ocean floor.
“When sea cucumbers are wiped out, lobsters, fish, and corals die, too,” says Magali Zacarías, senior technician at the Ensenada Scientific Research and Higher Education Center (CICESE). “Without them, the seabed becomes anoxic, devoid of oxygen.”
Benjamín Barón, a senior researcher at CICESE’s Aquaculture Department, leads efforts to farm the wrinkled sea cucumber. After 18 months of trials, his team is close to controlling the species’ full life cycle in captivity, but technical and financial challenges remain.
Demand for sea cucumbers is high in China and South Korea, where they are prized as a delicacy and for supposed medicinal benefits. Dried sea cucumbers, the most lucrative form, can fetch over $1,000 per kilogram due to their long shelf life and high market value.
Since 2021, Baja California has exported 100% of its sea cucumber production.
The region is home to two commercial species: the wrinkled sea cucumber, found from the U.S. border to mid-peninsula, and the brown sea cucumber, which ranges from the Gulf of California to Peru.
The brown sea cucumber is listed as Endangered by Mexico’s Environment Secretariat (SEMARNAT). The wrinkled species is considered Vulnerable and is only regulated by annual quotas from the National Commission of Aquaculture and Fisheries (CONAPESCA).
According to Barón, the wrinkled sea cucumber population in Baja California has declined by 50% over the past 12 to 15 years. Across its full range, including the U.S., populations have dropped by 30% to 40%.
The aquaculture project aims to produce juvenile sea cucumbers for fishing cooperatives with existing permits, allowing them to grow the animals to market size in controlled ocean farms. Long-term, the juveniles could also help repopulate overfished areas.
“We want to domesticate the species by mastering its full life cycle under human care,” says Barón. “It’s the most complex challenge, requiring control of environmental conditions for long-term cultivation.”
Barón believes aquaculture alone could ease pressure on wild stocks.
“Developing aquaculture may partially solve the overfishing problem, without the high costs of repopulation,” he says. “The model comes from academic research, but the goal is for it to reach society through public, private, or social initiatives.”