Urchin Larvae

[mikedawg8898]

has anyone grown out an urchin larva, my teacher has some and im thinking about taking her up on the challenge because shes never done it and i havent either. any recommendations on tank size, filtration, flow, food,temperature, salinity,etc? Thanks in advance

 

[Bongo Shrimp]

It depends on the species as some are moderately difficult and some are just plain horribly difficult. ORA breeds at least one species. They would likely need a specialized kreisel tank and could potentially have a pretty long larval stage.

 

[mikedawg8898]

I'm not exactly sure what species it is, my school was just donated a few urchins and we joined together the sperm and egg and had a few get to the larval stage so we decided to try and grow them out

 

[Bongo Shrimp]

If you can figure out the species you might be able to find some info on rearing the larvae. I do know that long spine urchins have larvae that are very susceptible to deformities caused by crashing into the sides of their tank. They therefore require a very specially shaped kreisel with a flow pattern that prevents this. Martin Moe has done a ton of work on rearing long spines and it's a pretty painful process. I would see if he has any info online about his experiences or you could probably find his email somewhere and ask him.