Sea cucumbers are prized by oriental populations for their dried body wall known as

b�che-de-mer ('trepang' or 'hai-som') and constitute therefore an important

resource of commercial value in coastal fisheries (Conand 1989Conand , 2001Conand ,
2004aConand , 2008). Worldwide demand of this marine product has increased the
fishing pressure and has lead to over-exploitation (Conand, 2004aConand, ,
2006aConand, , 2006b) Countries of the Western Indian Ocean (WIO) have traded sea
cucumbers for hundred of years, however only recently they have been interested in
their management (Conand, 1989Conand, , 2008 Conand et al., 2006; Conand and
Muthiga, 2007) which needs investigations on their biology including reproduction.
A regional multidisciplinary MASMA programme (Marine Science for Management)
granted by WIOMSA (Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association) is underway in
the WIO that will bring data on the reproduction of the most important b�che-de-mer
species (Conand et al., 2006; Conand and Muthiga, 2007)
Preferred habitat type for settlement appears to be on seagrass leaves for H.
scabra (Mercier et al. 2000a) with cues including the presence of particular food
types such as diatoms and certain bacteria (Battaglene 1999). Very little is known
of the larval movement and settlement processes of H. scabra in the wild
A few cultivars of cucumber are parthenocarpic, the blossoms creating seedless
fruit without pollination. Pollination for these cultivars degrades the quality. In
the United States, these are usually grown in greenhouses, where bees are excluded.
In Europe, they are grown outdoors in some regions, and bees are excluded from
these areas.

Most cucumber cultivars, however, are seeded and require pollination. Thousands of
hives of honey bees are annually carried to cucumber fields just before bloom for
this purpose. Cucumbers may also be pollinated by bumblebees and several other bee
species. Most cucumbers that require pollination are self-incompatible, so pollen
from a different plant is required to form seeds and fruit.[2] Some self-compatible
cultivars exist that are related to the 'Lemon' cultivar.[2] Symptoms of inadequate
pollination include fruit abortion and misshapen fruit. Partially pollinated
flowers may develop fruit that are green and develop normally near the stem end,
but are pale yellow and withered at the blossom end.

Traditional cultivars produce male blossoms first, then female, in about equivalent
numbers. Newer gynoecious hybrid cultivars produce almost all female blossoms. They
may have a pollenizer cultivar interplanted, and the number of beehives per unit
area is increased, but temperature changes induce male flowers even on these
plants, which may be sufficient for pollination to occur.