Urchin's & Zoas ???

minibowmatt · Mar 24, 2007

I have a hitchiker urchin. He is now about dime size. I think he is a pencil urchin, but I cant be sure. He is pure black. I am noticing my coralline is being chewed off in tiny sections, and now I see a spot on a zoa rock that is missing coralline (was previously there) and possibly even eate some zoa heads. I am not sure if they were eaten, or just reallly ticked off and closed now.

Have urchins been known to damage zoas?

JGoslee · Mar 24, 2007

I also have a small hitchhiker urchin. I have no idea if they eat corals. I put mine in my sump just in case.

Azurel · Mar 24, 2007

I have a few rock boring urchins, as far as I have read they eat algae and coralline algae. They shouldn't eat your polyps, long-spine urchins have been know to do that though I guess.

ricordianut · Mar 24, 2007

i have many issues with my urchins in my tank either eating my zoas or damaging them as they crawl around the rock work the like peel the zoos ans palys right off i got rid of all of mine

Smarsh · Mar 24, 2007

I had some long spined black urchins and they were eating my xenia. Not sure if they ever damaged the zoa's but they sure munched that xenia down to nothing almost.

Sandy

minibowmatt · Mar 24, 2007

I wonder if this is a longspined Urchin.. He is black... And he definetly did some damage to a colony of palys... looks like I will be doing some hunting tonight after lights out...Thanx Guys, I knew I could count on you for a quick answer!

minibowmatt · Mar 25, 2007

I found him. However, I couldnt get him out of the hole without killing him. I didnt want to, but If he is munching on my zoas, so be it.

burn · Mar 25, 2007

Where did you get the rock. FLR is known for it's hitchhiker urchins, I had a few and donated them to the LFS. They always knock things over and irritate the corals IMO

minibowmatt · Mar 25, 2007

it was a fiji rock. I dont have any FL rock.

got zoanthids? · Mar 25, 2007

I have a pencil urchin that i banished to the sump because he bull-dozed thru some eagle eyes eating 4-6 polyps. I'm just glad I caught him before I bought the expensive palys. I must say I did have him a year or so before he munched on them, so not sure if it was an accident or he just had an appetite. Scott ( aka reef fanatic @ RC)

wild-tiger · Mar 27, 2007

If it's ok, I'd like to throw in my experience also.

I just recently got rid of my long spinned urchin. I loved him but he was such a pest. Constantly knocking over the coral frags and he even ate 3 polyps off a 6 polyp frag. I was so not cheese with this guy.

Please do becareful getting him out, the short spines that are close to the body are venomous and the long spines are actually very fragile and trust me, because i learned this from experience, if one breaks off in your finger it's not pleasant and can cause a nasty infection.