Analyses of abyssal holothurian and its gut content and feces collected during SONNE cruise SO242/2, Peru Basin (SE Pacific)

Abyssal holothurians were collected during SO242-2 in the Peru Basin in 2015 with ROV Kiel 6000 (Geomar, Germany). Aboard the vessel, holothurians were measured (length, width, height), dissected and stored frozen (-20°C). Feces and gut content of individual holothurian specimens were also kept frozen. At the shore-based laboratory of NIOZ-Yerseke, samples were weight before and after freeze-drying and organic (org.) C/ δ13C and N/ δ15N content of freeze-dried, finely-ground holothurian gut content and feces were measured with an elemental analyzer coupled with an isotope ratio mass spectrometer. Sediment grain size of holothurian gut content was determined by laser diffraction on freeze-dried and sieved (<1 mm) sediment samples in a Malvern Mastersizer 2000.