Editing Sea cucumber (section)

===Commercial harvest===
In recent years, the sea cucumber industry in Alaska has increased due to increased demand for the skins and muscles to China.<ref name="NF">{{cite web|url=http://www.nationalfisherman.com/2008.asp?ItemID=1800&pcid=373&cid=375&archive=yes|last=Ess|first=Charlie|title=Wild product's versatility could push price beyond $2 for Alaska dive fleet|publisher=National Fisherman|access-date=2008-08-01|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090122074025/http://www.nationalfisherman.com/2008.asp?ItemID=1800&pcid=373&cid=375&archive=yes|archive-date=2009-01-22}}</ref> Wild sea cucumbers are caught by divers. Wild Alaskan sea cucumbers have higher nutritional value and are larger than farmed Chinese sea cucumbers. Larger size and higher nutritional value has allowed the Alaskan fisheries to continue to compete for market share.<ref name="NF" />

One of Australia's oldest fisheries is the collection of sea cucumber, harvested by divers from throughout the [[Coral Sea]] in far [[North Queensland]], [[Torres Straits]] and [[Western Australia]]. In the late 1800s, as many as 400 divers operated from [[Cook Town, Queensland]].

[[Overfishing]] of sea cucumbers in the Great Barrier Reef is threatening their population.<ref>{{cite news |title= Overfishing threatens sea slugs: study| agency= [[Australian Associated Press|AAP]] |url=http://www.theaustralian.com.au/higher-education/overfishing-threatens-sea-slugs-study/story-e6frgcjx-1226846325407 |newspaper= [[The Australian]] |date=March 6, 2014 |access-date= November 17, 2014}}</ref> Their popularity as luxury seafood in [[East Asia]]n countries poses a serious threat.<ref>{{cite journal|title=The cost of being valuable: predictors of extinction risk in marine invertebrates exploited as luxury seafood |journal= Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences|first1=Steven W. |last1=Purcell |first2=Beth A. |last2=Polidoro |first3=Jean-François |last3=Hamel |first4=Ruth U. |last4=Gamboa |first5=Annie |last5=Mercier |doi=10.1098/rspb.2013.3296 |pmid=24598425 |date=5 March 2014 |volume=281 |issue=1781 |pages=20133296 |pmc=3953849 }}</ref>