Echinoderm Mania!

Hi All,

It has been a while since I have seen more than just the arms on my brittle star...so on this occasion I actually photographed it! It is getting huge! The arms are longer than a brand new unsharpened pencil!

It was previously residing behind one of my powerheads and it's arms were always on the surface presumably feeding on the layer of phytoplankton...not to mention the particles at feeding time and the meaty chunks of my homemade menu. I am delighted that it has come out of hiding and is now residing among the branches of my acropora!

It's surface is covered in black and yellow hair-like spines and the arms have black and yellow stripes! I saw it and fell in love...and now that it is out and about I get to admire it everyday!

As I was writing this post, my cucumber came out and passed right beside my monitor, enticing me to take a photo...

So then I figured, why not include all of my echinoderms, so I photographed my tuxedo urchin...who just happened to be sporting a ricordia mushroom as a crown The mushroom was one that was growing on the sand so the urchin did not detach it.

These are among the most abundant inverts in the oceans. They inhabit intertidal pools as well as emergent rock all the way to the deepest depths of the sea. They are super efficient at processing food, surviving on very minimal amounts to none for long periods of time. Wikipedia has a great description of this group, check it out at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Echinoderm

Enjoy!
Bye for now!