Please give me information!! Sea Urchin

keonia

keonia

Member
Hi You all (y'all) as they say in Kentucky
have any comments on a sea urchin aka. Pencil Urchin Texedo urchin
I think I can't get anymore :happyfish for my tank but was wondering if anyone had any experience with a pencil urchin. It has long spiny spines pokey spikes, my lfs says they clean the tank well and they are Hardy.
$17.00 or so
Any one with any experience of owning one?
Thanks!
 
birdy

birdy

Active Member
do you have corals in your tank? If you do be aware that they tend to bulldoze things and knock them around and off the rock.
They are good algae eaters and have the typical requirements of most inverts, they need a salinity of 35ppt (1.025sg), good water conditions, plenty of algae to eat.
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
Pencil urchins (Eucidaris) are the only non-reef safe urchin, IMO, commonly sold in the hobby. They ARE grazers but eat basically what is in their path, which means that zoanthids, etc are at risk. Blue tuxedo urchins (Mespilia) are popular additions and I recommend them in a mature tank with pristine water conditions, and especially the specific gravity range noted (1.025-1.026). They are, as mentioned, bulldozers so all rock should be stacked securely and frags stable as well. I suppose I will throw in a disclaimer that any of them pose a risk to a nip at polyps, etc in their path.
However, I DO NOT recommend them if you don't have a good growth of algae in the tank. That is their primary diet. They may take to spot feeding, but they should have something to graze. If you do, you must also see if they take algae sheets as well. Diversity in diet is good...all meat to a grazer is bad.
 
sw65galma

sw65galma

Active Member
HE did say
"It has long spiny spines pokey spikes,"
Which even though he said pencil urchin sounded like a long spiny urchin.. :notsure:
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
LOL, to me it definitely sounds like an echinoderm since that means "spiny skin." Beyond that its tough. It would be difficult to distinguish them based on spines unless you have other species to compare it to. But the long spined urchin is black and would have lots of very long thing spines that are several inches or longer; the pencil urchin has spines that tend to be blunt and stout and a couple of inches long; the tuxedo has very small spines with areas that do not have spines (usually blue). And there are lots of others also in the trade as well. So I gotta go with whatever common names I can get :) To be sure though, you may also wish to research the "rock boring urchin" (Echinometra), the "sea egg" (Tripneustes) and the "variegated urchin" (Lytechinus) all of which I've seen (along with the previously mentioned guys) for sale or as hitch hikers. I wouldn't but a lot of faith in the identification at the LFS.
If it is a long spined urchin (Diadema), then it is a grazer and gets large. It also has venemous hollow barbed spines, and it is imperative to know its location at all times when your hand is in the tank. Best in larger tanks for sure. Sometimes they are called something like the "blue eyed urchin" or "orange eyed urchin" because they have a big sac on their 'back" that has some bright colors and looks like an eye. But really it is part of their butt. :D
HHuuuhhuuhhh she said butt.
 
sw65galma

sw65galma

Active Member
Originally Posted by ophiura
If it is a long spined urchin (Diadema), then it is a grazer and gets large. It also has venemous hollow barbed spines, and it is imperative to know its location at all times when your hand is in the tank. Best in larger tanks for sure. Sometimes they are called something like the "blue eyed urchin" or "orange eyed urchin" because they have a big sac on their 'back" that has some bright colors and looks like an eye. But really it is part of their butt. :D
HHuuuhhuuhhh she said butt.
Lol ya at first I thought it was laying eggs :scared:
Then i did more research ewwww
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
You know, I add weight in unfortunate places but I hope I never have what could be described as an "anal sac" with bright colors like an urchin, or have a specialized fish living in there like a cucumber. Some echinoderms are disgusting, but not brittlestars.
Yes, 'nough said.
 
_nix_

_nix_

Member
I had a pencil urchin that would just plow through my coraline and macro aglae. And I mean PLOW.
They are definitely good aglae eaters, and mine liked to have some meaty foods every once and awhile.
just my .02.
 
mudplayerx

mudplayerx

Active Member
Pretty much all urchins in our tank at college can be seen scraping the coraline algae right off the rocks. Its to the point where we have no purple in the tank at all.
Not only do they bulldoze things, but they also pick them up and move them.
 
keonia

keonia

Member

Originally Posted by sw65galma
HE did say
"It has long spiny spines pokey spikes,"
Which even though he said pencil urchin sounded like a long spiny urchin.. :notsure:

Sw65galma, I'm Female !! (Single female) any single male into SWF in my area? JUST KIDDING :D :jumping: lol I read that part over and I don't know what I was thinking!! Sea Urchins don't have spines!!!
I learned a new word
Echinoderm !!! with bright colorful sac - butts!! lol

I was trying to describe it and I guess i got tongue twisted!! LOL Okay, your responses have all been informative in addition to what I found on my researching this creature!! I will save my $17.00
THANKS for everyone's input
Mahalo ! Thanks!!!
Ophiura -- Did you noticed that many look forward to your expertise and they Including myself has spelled your name wrong -- opihura, opihuria lol Just wondered if you've noticed!!
 
sw65galma

sw65galma

Active Member
Originally Posted by keonia
I read that part over and I don't know what I was thinking!! Sea Urchins don't have spines!!!
Well laugh again cuz they do have spines, just not like us :p
Here's Mr. Spiny..
 
keonia

keonia

Member
SW65galma
That is a WONDERFUL Picture of Mr. Spiny!! well always learning new things every day! thats neat that they do have spines and an Butt-like sac that looks like an eye!!!
Echinoderm anatomy 101!!
again, that is a really kewl looking urchin. I really would like to have one in my tank because I think it's neat lookin!! But since I dont have the environment right now, I guess I will wait
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member

Originally Posted by keonia
Ophiura -- Did you noticed that many look forward to your expertise and they Including myself has spelled your name wrong -- opihura, opihuria lol Just wondered if you've noticed!!
:D I notice but I am used to it. I had a particularly unusual last name prior to my marriage and grew up with confusion etc. I can usually figure it out, and have no worries, so long as not so nice terms are used for me, LOL

It comes up a lot so I will mention the impact on calcarous algae. Urchins will graze even hard structures including getting off some of the very thin surfaces of rocks. One possibility is that they will remove most coralline, but I have also heard people say that it helped to spread their coralline as well. So if you find it has all been removed, be sure that you have all parameters in prime condition for growth of calcareous algae to be sure. They aren't the fastest critters.
 
stru

stru

New Member
i was hoping someone could tell me just what exactly is coming out of my pencil urchin. he oozes/shoots out a lot of white stuff. is this just....in nicer terms....waste?
 
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