Urchins

[goldenboy]

I know that adding livestock is not always the answer to control algae. I have also read in a couple of links that part of algae control is PWC, proper lighting, maintenance, and proper livestock.

With that being said, I assume that hermits and snails are proper livestock, but what about urchins? From what I've read, they are great grazers, especially if I have hair algae problems. Which urchins are safer than others, Longspine, Pencil, Pincushion?

Thanks

 

[roka64]

My pincushion mowed down the hair algae I had, but I have also corrected the problem.
Pincushion: they will also munch your coraline, they pick up small rock (possibly small corals), shells (sometimes with snails in them), macro algae and just about anything else they can grab. They don't dislodge rocks, at least mine doesn't.
Pencil: also eats some hair algae and coraline and other algaes, they sometimes wedge inbetween rocks and can possibly topple rocks/coral frags. They don't pick up stuff. Mine has a little bit of hair algae on it's spines, they can also grow coraline or other algaes on their spines.
Long Spined: I don't own one, but will put one in my 125. One thing to know about them, their spines contain venom. These could be housed in an agressive aquarium.
From what I have read on urchins, they say they are nocturnal, but mine are out all day and all over the tank.

 

[Hara]

This might help you...

 

[roka64]

Nice Hara. Is that a dead pincushion in front of the long spinned one?

 

[goldenboy]

Thanks for the help and the link. I like the purple urchin / common urchin, maybe my LFS will have one.

 

[roka64]

Thanks for the help and the link. I like the purple urchin / common urchin, maybe my LFS will have one.

That one will carry things around too, if you look closely, you can see the tentacles. My pincushion has been the cause a few of my snails deaths, due to starvation, from him carrying them around for a few days.

 

[Hara]

Could be a dead one Scott, that is a LFS picture

 

[roka64]

Could be a dead one Scott, that is a LFS picture

Ok, cool, I thought so. That's what they look like after their spines fall out.