#echinometridae

Complete with a small starfish which was one of many carnivores that converged on the sea urchin's remains after somebody split it open. Presumably for food - see below.

Evechinus chloroticus is a Echinometrid urchin endemic to Aotearoa, growing to about 17cm across, and is much more common than it used to be, thanks to overfishing of predators such as snapper and spiny rock lobsters. This has had a disastrous effect on kelp forests in many parts of the islands, as the urchins devour the kelp's holdfasts and leave the seafloor barren.

Kina are a traditional food for Māori, often eaten raw from the sea, but has a bitter taste for much of the year. The latter factor is probably why it hasn't become a valuable export to Asia and Europe, where sea urchin roe is highly prized. In NZ it can still sell for $70/kg.

The fragment of one, anyway. Sydney’s most common sea urchin, usually seen nestled into cavities they’ve made in the sandstone, and frequently using shells or seaweed as a sunhat. Found on rocky shores on the southern half of Australia.

A few tiny tubeworms have built their tubes on this fragment of test, too.

Heterocentrotus mammillatus

パイプウニ

Slate pencil urchin

Heterocentrotus mammillatus

Slate pencil urchin Since it is nocturnal, it remains hidden behind a rock during the day. While hiding in a rock, its needles are fixed strongly by the function of the catch apparatus, a connective tissue unique to the echinoderm.

パイプウニ 夜行性なので昼間は岩の間に隠れてます。 隠れている間は、キャッチ結合組織（棘皮動物に特有の結合組織）の働きでトゲで強力に固定しています。

KINGDOM Animalia

PHYLUM Echinodermata

CLASS Echinoide

ORDER Echinoida

FAMILY Echinometridae

GENUS Colobocentrotus

Anthocidaris crassispina

Anthocidaris crassispina is fit to eat.

ムラサキウニは食用に適する。