How many sea urchins can you see in this picture? They aren't easy to spot except for their spines.
Sea urchins archaically called sea hedgehogs are small, spiny, globular animals that, with their close kin, such as sand dollars, constitute the class Echinoidea of the echinoderm phylum. About 950 species of echinoids inhabit all oceans from the intertidal to 5000 m deep. The shell, or "test", of sea urchins is round and spiny, typically from 3 to 10 cm (1.2 to 3.9 in) across. Common colours include black and dull shades of green, olive, brown, purple, blue, and red. Sea urchins move slowly, and feed on mostly algae. Sea otters, starfish, wolf eels, triggerfish, and other predators hunt and feed on sea urchins. Their roe is a delicacy in many cuisines. The name 'urchin' is an old word for hedgehog, which sea urchins resemble.
I just loved the colours in this shot and the different creatures that live in the rock pools.
@leananiemand@happypat@taffy No I wasn't under water taking these. We were just clambering over the rocks at low tide and checking out the rock pools. We are lucky that the water is so clear where I live.
Great shot. I count 5 of them. I really like their shells after the have died (that sounds terrible, but you know what I mean!). When I was in the jungles of Indonesia, a local caught one of these, and broke it open for us to eat. I wouldn't recommend it!
