Urchins Good or Bad?

[vito is hooked]

Urchins in FOWLR do they pose any threat?

 

[scotmc]

If you have have your corals attched to a disk or rock, they will find their way on them. I like mine, but after a few times of knocking over things, I had to attach them to something. It can be a PITA.

 

[ahullsb]

It's unlikely that they will pose a threat. But a fish could get startled and accidentally puncture itself sooner or later.

 

[DrBegalke]

I think they will be fine.
No triggerfish with them though.

 

[REEFKEEPA]

I like urchins
They are worth the risk.
Just make sure you can keep up with the coralline demand....

 

[vito is hooked]

Thanks, Woke up to some pretty DAMM clean rocks! Looks like it took out a power washer last night and some of my rock. I read that they dont like Nitrates o much. Mine are around 10. I will have to keep an eye on him.

 

[mouscacha]

I don't know about everyone's urchins, but mine never left his hole after the first day of cruising around the tank. He's been in that same hole for the past 4 months.

Anyone else experience the same thing?

Should I be feeding him anything?

 

[vito is hooked]

I know they are nocturnal, need lots of alge, try nori weed and check Nitrates.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Some urchins will decimate the coralline, while others may eat much smaller amounts. I have a long pined urchin banished to a basement reef tank because it ate too much in the main tank.

Here's an article for urchin lovers on the chemistry of things like urchin spines:

Sea Urchins: A Chemical Perspective
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-08/rhf/index.htm

 

[Mare100]

We got an urchin in our 120 Reef that came in as a hitchhiker on some LR. He's getting huge! He doesn't bother anybody though and he doesn't seem to knock things down as much as the sea hare. He's keeps the rock spotless!

Here's a picture of him...

M

 

[vito is hooked]

Thats the same one I got, I am hopeing he doesnt do to much damage to my coraline or else to the FO tank with him! I cant believe how clean the rock he was on last night is. Only had him 1 day.

 

[FOSELONE]

i had some urchins that chewed up my acrylic...never again...

 

[woogy]

I have a huge black spiny urchin for almost 3years. I don't have much coraline algae though. They state they are herbivores but he ate the carcass of my dead fish once.

BTW: My nitrates are through the roof and he has survived for a long time!!!

 

[vito is hooked]

I forgot where I read that(Quote) They will not tolerate high nitrates, and if you see that they have lost spines its a sighn of poor quality of water. I wanted one for a while but had to wait till I had reasonabley good water.
PH 8.4
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 10 ish
Alk 8dkh
Cal 420
Stoped by LFS yesterday for some feeders, 120 bucks later, I got a few new things and he is one of them.(Been there 4 at least 3 weeks) It was destiny. Hope for thebest