Do Pencil Urchins Eat Corals?

[FlyinggFish]

Has anyone ever heard of pencil urchins eating corals?
If so, what kind.=?

 

[redhanded77]

ive got a few in my tank, and they havent bothered any of my sps. when it comes to softies and lps, i cant tell you for sure.

 

[FlyinggFish]

I guess I'll just have to watch...I'll have in my tank are lps and soft corals.

 

[greenbean36191]

Yes. They will eat just about anything they want to.

 

[Rich D]

watch them carefully; just like crabs and most other urchins, they could be considered reef safe until they get a taste for coral.

 

[Dweezle]

Yes, had one that liked soft and LPS. They can really do some damage in a short time.

 

[Elysia]

Ahh, where was Green (Mike?) when I was trying to tell someone this a few weeks ago?

I have a "pencil" from the FL Keys. Found it munching on one of my gorgonians.

 

[Superstretch18]

I wouldn't even risk keeping it in the tank. They can potentially eat almost anything. I've seen them even eat other urchins...

 

[gh0st]

Def. Not Soft Coral safe. They can also go after LPS, Polyps, Clams, and sometimes SPS.

 

[ttj]

Re: Do Pencil Urchins Eat Corals?

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15251441#post15251441 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by FlyinggFish
Has anyone ever heard of pencil urchins eating corals?
If so, what kind.=?

Yes, they do. One by one my Red Sea xenia disappeared from its big colony mysteriously. Then one night I saw three of them devoured xenia right in front of me. They made me :mad2: and threw them away immediately. Good luck.

 

[Bernie21]

YES!!!