Pelagic sea cucumbers in the Galapagos: Midwater grazers that short-circuit deep-sea carbon flux.

Direct observations from submersible dives off the Galapagos Islands have revealed that Pelagothuria natatrix, the only known holopelagic echinoderm, actively intercepts settling particles well before they can reach the deep seafloor, thereby short-circuiting the typical downward flux of organic carbon generated in the photic zone.