re sea urchin to be or not to be

[ECFENCING]

hey everyone. just got a sea urchine from a local reefer and now i'm having second thoughts. should have done research on it before hand.


He told me that this urchin does not eat much coralline and that's what I'm afraid of putting this guy in my tank. he's pretty big.

Do you think i should give it a try? my other inhabitants are 1 yellow tang, 2 perc clowns and a small hippo i just got from reef encounters.

 

[ECFENCING]

better yet what concerns should i have about the urchin?

 

[samksy]

better yet what concerns should i have about the urchin?

If it's the type that move around all the time, it's gonna knock down your coral , i believe they are algea gazer, should be reef safe.
I have one small urchin hitchhicker, but all it does is sticks to the side of the glass.

 

[inline6]

better yet what concerns should i have about the urchin?

it might bulldoze you corals then it'll die from lack of food.

 

[ECFENCING]

thx ok now i found out that the black longspine sea urchine has venomous spines. funny thing is I asked this local reefer it had venomous spines and he said no way. it's the equivalent of a bee sting. no way i'm putting this guy in my aquarium. what do i do? can i leave him in the bucket he came from and just put in a powerhead and heater until someone can pick him up?


anyone want a black pencil sea urchin?

 

[inline6]

Off Topic:
I remember snorkeling in Hawaii, the entire shoreline was covered with these long spine sea urchins and the company I was snorkeling w/ didn't even mention this nor did they tell anyone not to touch the corals.

?????????

 

[ECFENCING]

i could be wrong. i found this info on dr. fosters and smith.

 

[ulmo]

Ecfencing,

I have two sea urchins in my tank and never had a problem with them. I kind of like them. If you think about it, everything has a purpose on the reef, even urchins fit into the scheme of maintaining balance. I think you should reconsider, if not I'll be glad to pick up another urchin.

 

[ECFENCING]

ulmo is it the black pencil sea urchine and can the sting be venoumous? I think maybe dr fosters and smith puts the venomous disclaimer because i guess you can have an allergic reaction to a bee type sting?

this guy is pretty big.

 

[ECFENCING]

maybe i'll post a pic in a minute or two and someone could help me id him and let me know if it's sting is venomous?

 

[herman]

Always depends on the type of Urchin. Most are not safe for our tanks. Good thing is that you can put him in and see how it goes. AT least they are easy to spot, catch and remove if need be.

I say go for it and observe very closely! Not to forget, Urchins are good detrivores ie crap eaters

 

[ECFENCING]

herman thanks. here's the link to what i have. my concern is with the little one sticking her hands in the tank and handling this thing.

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?pCatId=591

 

[herman]

As far as I am concerned the little one comes first. That type or Urchin is reefsafe as long as everything is secured. They have been known to rearrange tanks.

I am sure that someone will take it off your hands.

My concern especially when kids are involved is allergies against stings that can result in Anaphylactic Shock. I dont mean to scare you in any way and that is just the worse case scenario.

Training the kids early huh?

 

[ECFENCING]

Herman:

Thanks. yeah the little one loves to feed the fish.

Any takers out there for the urchin? I think ulmo wanted it.

How do i take care of this thing until someone can pick it up? I don't want to kill it before someone picks it up. can i just keep it in the io bucket its in already with a heater? Should I place a powerhead in there?

LMK Thanks. BTW I'm in North Jersey just over the GW Bridge. So ulmo if you are coming from Queens it's only a 45 min. ride.

 

[herman]

Heater, powerhead and regular partial waterchanges. Dont forget to leave some seaweed for the dude

 

[ECFENCING]

i'm going to keep it in the io container that i got it in with a heater and a maxi jet.

If someone picks up soon then perhaps i don't need to do a small water change. It's only in about 2-3 gallons of water.

toasted sea weed will do?

 

[pecan2phat]

I gave my black spiney to a local fish store after it got kinda big and also after I witnessed it eat my $60 Solomon Island true percula that I had just acclimated into the tank.
The poor fella was still breathing so no, it wasn't cleaning up after a carcass.

 

[aaron]

I wouldnt worry about the fact that its venomous, I have been stung by them a couple of times and basicly you need to have the spine puncture your skin which is actually pretty hard to do. Once in you though, the spine always breaks off and has to be cut out. The venom is just the slime coating on the spine and i causes a lot of swelling and hurts a lot. But like i said you basicly have to step on it, its not a razor sharp needle point.

 

[ECFENCING]

aaron thanks. i'm still trying to get rid of it as the wife doesn't like it. I think it looks cool

 

[samksy]

Can you return it to the store for credit?