Prickly relations..hmmmm...

[Me No Nemo]

Some sea urchins live up to 200 years and have genetic engineering for eyes and ears yet have none. Interesting video:
http://www.wftv.com/video/10546646/index.html

 

[mfp4073]

I read something about that around 3 months ago... PRETTY WEIRD if you ask me!

 

[Sk8r]

I had a tripneustes that, after eating a ton of caulerpa, split up its seams and almost overnight increased nearly an inch in diameter, growing new spines out of the rather nice purple seam areas. And I only had him 3 months. I'd hate to meet him in 200 years!

 

[rdmpe]

I never realised that they eat macroalgae. I'll have to see if my pencil urchin wants some of that.

I'd like to get one of those urchins with a really small body and really super-long spines. But I haven't seen one of those in a while.

 

[Sk8r]

Tripneustes gracilis [foster/smith] will eat grape caulerpa, and grows pretty fast. I think it would be a nice 'club' possession, to trade around as needed.