What is the secret to urchins

[kingeroc]

I've tried adding an urchin to my tank 3 times now, the first 2 times I temp acclimated for 15 minutes and then dripped. First one I dripped for 45 minutes and then added, second one I dripped for over an hour and then added. Each died within a day.

This most current one I tested the salinity and it was at 29ppt and I keep my tanks at 35ppt so I dripped for several hours to achieve the correct salinity. There were also 2 peppermint shrimp and a mushroom coral I dripped at the same time as they all came from same place and were at same salinity. While these are doing well the urchin looks pretty rough, its sitting on a patch of algae and has moved but it has lost some spines.

So far this has been the only creature I've had trouble adding to my tank and I don't know what I am doing wrong

Ammonia/Nitrite are 0 and Nitrate is about 10

 

[blaxsun]

Urchins can be hit and miss as they're very sensitive to a lot of things. I haven't had the greatest luck, either - although I do have a pair of tuxedo urchins that are still thriving 3 years on...

 

[Kapachuka3]

With urchins it all comes down to being lucky. IMO I think they should be left in the ocean unless they are captive bred. Urchins are very susceptible to different temperatures and any different water parameters than the one there used to. I had a white pincushion for about 2 years and then he passed away very suddenly. Ive also had 1 tuxedo and 1 halloween and they only lasted 3 days. Currently I have a pencil urchin and hes been going strong for 2 years. One of my favorite creatures but I think they should be left in the ocean.

 

[blaxsun]

Then there's the flip-side where you get a green urchin and it proceeds to hog all the seaweed and hunt down and kill your snails, hermit and horseshoe crabs...

 

[JoJosReef]

Very sensitive to changes in salinity. My first tux started losing spines and died after a water change with a batch of saltwater I got from the LFS that was at 0.038sg--my fault for not checking their water myself. LFS employee told me my corals probably loved all the extra Ca/Mg. Ordered a RODI buddy that day and have been making my own saltwater since.

I get mine from ReefCleaners. For the tux urchin, I was instructed to temp acclimate in the bag, then add 50% volume of tank water, then 15 min later 25% volume 4 times at 15 min intervals. Tux seems to be happy 5 months later.

 

[twentyleagues]

I remember the first urchin I got years ago. I acclimated by temp drip and just to be sure temp again. It fell apart in front of my eyes. A couple months later I got the courage to try again I asked what they did. He told me temp acclimate and toss em in. I was shocked. I tried it and it worked! That was a blue tuxedo. I tried another a year or so later a Halloween urchin and did great also. Both lived for a few years after. I sold all my stuff and they went with it. Is this the best way? Probably not but it's worked in the past. Will I try this if I get one in the future? probably. Should you? I'm not a professional nor have I done this (reefing) in quite a while.

 

[Kapachuka3]

Then there's the flip-side where you get a green urchin and it proceeds to hog all the seaweed and hunt down and kill your snails, hermit and horseshoe crabs...

It probably ticked you off but in a way thats pretty sick.

 

[Eddielg]

Be sure that you dont have any Bumble Bee Shrimp in your live rock. LFS tols us they are great tank cleaners. WRONG !!! little bas!***ds only eat meat and the tubular legs off of urchins.

 

[SDReefer77]

I've read this as well, taking a more aggressive approach with the sensitive inverts, it's definitely counterintuitive. The science behind it, if I remember right, is they are so sensitive once you add together parameter changes during transit (even just a short trip from the store) with a slow drip added on top of it causing micro changes and not allowing for much turnover in the bag water, it is continuously shocking the animal with those smaller changes.

So, with less "shocks" being ideal, what Jojo's LFS advised with the 50-25-25-25 or going all out like Twenty's LFS recommended and just chucking them in after temp acclimating this seems to work better for them.

 

[SDReefer77]

Be sure that you dont have any Bumble Bee Shrimp in your live rock. LFS tols us they are great tank cleaners. WRONG !!! little bas!***ds only eat meat and the tubular legs off of urchins.

Or Harlequin shrimp lol

 

[blaxsun]

It probably ticked you off but in a way thats pretty sick.

Nature at its finest! (plus got some good stories out of it)

 

[Lavey29]

I bought 3 tuxedos from Petco of all places but they are still thriving 1.5 years later.

 

[bj274]

I got a tux Sunday from petco and he’s not doing well at all…. Salinity was super low at 1.018, so I dripped everything I bought for 2 or 3 hours until salinity got close to tank at 1.024 (tank is 1.025), but he hasn’t moved. He dropped the rocks he was carrying but still has spines and color. I moved him a little tonight and he still seems to be alive, and he does have one rock he’s hanging on to.
don’t know what to do

 

[Brit’s Fish]

I remember the first urchin I got years ago. I acclimated by temp drip and just to be sure temp again. It fell apart in front of my eyes. A couple months later I got the courage to try again I asked what they did. He told me temp acclimate and toss em in. I was shocked. I tried it and it worked! That was a blue tuxedo. I tried another a year or so later a Halloween urchin and did great also. Both lived for a few years after. I sold all my stuff and they went with it. Is this the best way? Probably not but it's worked in the past. Will I try this if I get one in the future? probably. Should you? I'm not a professional nor have I done this (reefing) in quite a while.

I have tried both ways with my urchins as well, and it’s always worked better to just chuck them in after temp acclimating.

 

[Lavey29]

I have tried both ways with my urchins as well, and it’s always worked better to just chuck them in after temp acclimating.

I don't acclimate anything, fish, inverts etc... I just cut the bag and toss them in.

 

[Jasonak]

I guess I have been extremely lucky with urchins. Being as they are at the coast line and I always see them in and out of water in the wild I really haven't even acclimated them other than temp. I have red slate pencil. regular pink pincushin and a helmet urchin. My helmet and pencil are easy 5 years old. Pinchushin came from petco got him about a month ago, floated him for 15 min and then dumped him in. Im really surprised that salinity would mess with them that much. There always in tidal pools etc. They really should be hardy. Maybe try a pencil urchin? Mine has been very hardy.

 

[2 Blue Shoes]

I think urchins may be sensitive to exposure to air. I believe sea stars are the same. I always make sure to NEVER expose them to the air and it seems to work. I have had urchins and sea stars that last a long time, and by keeping them in water when I remove them from the bag they all seem to acclimatize quickly to the tank.

 

[PeterEde]

I'm now on my 4 and 5th Nem. I havent been able to keep them alive past a few months.
Urchins I've had no problem with.
My first urchin is a longspine that I first discovered in the first weeks of my tank. It survived cycling from a few 8ths of an inch dia to now 17 month later its body bigger than a golf ball, inc spines 3in dia. It's survived NO3 as high as 60ppm.
About 6 months ago I put more live rock in and found another decorator urchin very small and it's growing rapidly. Now about 1in dia.

 

[JoJosReef]

I got a tux Sunday from petco and he’s not doing well at all…. Salinity was super low at 1.018, so I dripped everything I bought for 2 or 3 hours until salinity got close to tank at 1.024 (tank is 1.025), but he hasn’t moved. He dropped the rocks he was carrying but still has spines and color. I moved him a little tonight and he still seems to be alive, and he does have one rock he’s hanging on to.
don’t know what to do

Has he been losing any spines? How is the algae situation? Do you have massively long GHA? If so, I wouldn't expect him to begin feeding on it until you chop it all down to short hairs. If you don't have much algae, you might have to try different types of supplements. Mine knocked out all of the algae (assist from the turbos). I found it would not bother with Nori, but it happily eats a broken piece of algae wafer.

 

[PeterEde]

Has he been losing any spines? How is the algae situation? Do you have massively long GHA? If so, I wouldn't expect him to begin feeding on it until you chop it all down to short hairs. If you don't have much algae, you might have to try different types of supplements. Mine knocked out all of the algae (assist from the turbos). I found it would not bother with Nori, but it happily eats a broken piece of algae wafer.

I feed mine nori and there's a lot of coraline. Not much gha or other algea in my tank