Caribbean sea urchin

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Caribbean sea urchin
Caribbean sea urchin (Echinometra lucunter)

Caribbean sea urchin ( Echinometra lucunter )

Systematics
Class : Sea urchin (Echinoidea)
Subclass : Euechinoidea
Order : Camarodonta
Family : Echinometridae
Genre : Echinometra
Type : Caribbean sea urchin
Scientific name
Echinometra lucunter
( Linnaeus , 1758)

The Caribbean sea urchin ( Echinometra lucunter ) is a common sea ​​urchin in the Caribbean .

features

Echinometra lucunter has a more elliptical than spherical calcareous shell, which reaches a diameter of about 8 cm. At the extreme northern and southern edges of the range, the sea urchins are larger than in the middle. The sea urchin has quite short, up to 4 cm spines with a broad base and a pointed end. The calcareous shell is black to deep brownish-red, with a stronger red color on the aboral (upper) side than on the oral (lower) side. The spines are mostly black.

Reproduction

The Caribbean sea urchin is segregated. Males and females release their gametes into the open sea water, where fertilization takes place. The development proceeds through free-swimming larval stages until about 19 days after fertilization the metamorphosis to the sea urchin takes place on the sea floor. The sea urchin grows slowly and lives around 10 years. Sexual maturity is reached with a case diameter of about 2 cm.

Occurrence

Echinometra lucunter is widespread in the Caribbean Sea and also occurs on the coasts of Florida , Bermuda and South America south to Brazil . The sea urchin lives in very shallow rocky areas and on coral reefs mostly less than 2 m deep, occasionally up to 45 m deep. Occasionally it is found in seagrass meadows , but more often under rock slabs or coral fragments, especially in areas with strong water movement.

Way of life

Residential holes lucunter Echinometra in Brazil

Echinometra lucunter uses the teeth of his Aristotle lantern to gnaw holes in the rock or coral reef. During the day he lives in the self-drilled hemispherical cave and leaves it at night to graze on algae from the substrate within a radius of a few centimeters . The den is defended against conspecifics. Sometimes the sea urchin occurs in large numbers and can cause considerable damage through its drilling activity.

Predators and parasites

The most important predators of the Caribbean sea urchin include the turnstone ( Arenaria interpres ), the king helm snail ( Cassis tuberosa ) and the fish species Anisotremus surinamensis , Balistes vetula , Diodon hystrix and Labrisomus nuchipinnis . The Grundelart Ginsburgellus novemlineatus hides between the spines on the bottom of the sea urchin, where they as a parasite whose suckers grazes.

Use by humans

Humans collect the Caribbean sea urchin as food. The gonads of both females and males are eaten .

literature

  • Patrick L. Colin: Marine Invertebrates and Plants of the Living Reef. TFH Publications, Neptune (New Jersey) 1978. pp. 419-422. ISBN 0-86622-875-6 .
  • John M. Lawrence: Edible Sea Urchins: Biology and Ecology . Elsevier, Amsterdam 2006. pp. 243-275.

Web links

Commons : Caribbean sea urchin ( Echinometra lucunter )  - Collection of images, videos and audio files