urchin ?

[tony]

should i remove him/her?

he hitchhiked in on some liverock and he has been there for @ 9 months

i do see less corraline growth on my rock when he is out and about

other than keeping my rock bare are there any negatives to keeping one?

[hobogato]

if it is one of those rock boring urchins, watch out with your zoas - i had one eat a bunch before i figured out what was doing it.

[tony]

he is definitely a rock boring one, and is huge at that. i know exactly in which rock he burrows

im surprised you never saw him, he was in the rock i got from you

he is pretty brave too, he is often out in broad daylight

easiest way to remove him to just net him out? his spines dont look too friendly anything i should know before letting the neighborhood kids play with him?

[hobogato]

the rock from the frag tank? i didnt have that rock for very long - i never looked at that tank at night when he would be out and about. once he is out of his burrow, just scoop him up and put him in your fuge - thats what i did with the oned i removed from my display.

[matt]

If it's a long spined diadema urchin you should keep it; they're great algae eaters. There are other species of urchins that are a real problem for reef tanks. Got a picture?

[hobogato]

yeah, those rock boring ones usually have short, thick, brownish grey spines and a large white underside near the mouth.

[tony]

quick pic




http://home.satx.rr.com/tonyled/urchin.jpg

[mathias]

^^^^ looks like the scrambled nudy chan when I was a kid...

[blueboy]

looks like a rock boring urchin, i'd put him in the sump, or fuge.