Operation Falcon: Search for Sea Cucumber Poachers in Andaman Islands

Sea cucumbers are soft sea animals, not plants, even though they have 'cucumber' in their name.

They are very helpful to the ocean because they eat tiny bits of dead food on the sea floor and help recycle nutrients.

Some people catch them secretly because people in parts of Asia like to eat them or use them as medicine.

These illegal sellers can earn thousands of dollars from just a small amount.

That is why police and the navy in India are looking for the poachers.

On Sunday, August 9, they caught three people near a town called Diglipur.

A few weeks before, officers caught one person with a boat full of more than 300 kg of sea cucumber.

In India, it is totally against the law to take or even have these animals — they are protected like tigers and elephants.

But catching the poachers is hard because the animals live at the bottom of the sea, and some poachers go back to their illegal work after getting out on bail.