Unknown black thing with Thorns??

[KSum89]

Best i can explain this is, its black with brown/pink looking thorns poking out of it! I don't know what it is, but its moving around on my live rock, i thought it just stayed in one place, but it was completely gone when i left earlier and i just got back in and it's back in the same spot.

Can anyone I.D. this, i cannot find anything to help me out on figuring out what it is.

 

[Henry405]

I'm sure its some kind of urchin, just not sure which kind.

 

[puffballurchin]

Urchins eat a LOT of algae...they are one of the best algae eaters ya can get...free is even better

 

[Purevil21]

Urchins eat a LOT of algae...they are one of the best algae eaters ya can get...free is even better

+1, urchins can wipe out algae, but if your tank is acrylic they can scratch it. If it is glass then no worries, great CUC addition for free.

 

[hackteck]

how come i never get any cool hitch hikers like that! lol

 

[Purevil21]

I know! They are always pests....

 

[KSum89]

So its a good thing to have one im guessing hahah. I just went dowstairs to my aquarium to check on it and its gone again, but i guess ill leave it in there. I have no idea which rock he caught a ride on.

i have a glass tank, but making sure... is it safe to be around my peppermint shrimp and clown fish or any other small fish?

 

[Purevil21]

Yes they are safe, it is just going to be a janitor for you.

 

[KSum89]

Ok thanks everyone.
How sharp are its thorns? Because im still aquascaping and i dont want it to stab me and put a hole in my gloves while it hides. Because once i get alot of the base rock from reefcleaners, im going to move alot of rocks. That small urchin hides just as good as my pepermint so i cant find them when the lights on.

 

[nxb161]

Very cool find, but it really depends on the urchin and what type of algae. I've had 5 types of urchins and none of them really did much for algae removal.

If it is a black spiny like it looks like it may be, prepare for it to get big FAST. I really liked mine, but it quickly outgrew my 38G. and after being stung by it once, I brought it back to my LFS.

 

[KSum89]

Its black with light brown colored spikes. I like it so far, i just brought home a Royal Gramma and i saw the urchin slowly moving along the same rock its always on just now. I think imma keep it, it sounds like a cool little guy. I also have a real small black and white/transparent starfish on the glass on my aquarium too..i have so many things coming out my rock its crazy haha.

-On the side note, i just ordered 52 pounds of base rock from ReefCleaners.

 

[hackteck]

you got some nice hitch hikers there, so what size aquarium do you have? and where did you get your live rock?

 

[Purevil21]

I would laugh if you bought a piece from the same place and got a mantis shrimp hack.

 

[KSum89]

I got the rock from a huge fish store here in Nashville, Aquatic Critter.
They have a website if you want to check it out, and my tank is a 55 Gallon.

- I apologize if this is a repost, my other post didn't show up

Their rock is 6.99 a pound. I got all of my live rock there when i first started my tank up 2-3 months ago.

 

[Purevil21]

It didnt double, you were on the lucky end of the hitch hiker spectrum this time. lol

 

[KSum89]

I still got to figure out what kind of small starfish came out of one of the rocks.

But what you mean it didn't double?

 

[Purevil21]

You didn't double post, you said sorry if it was a repost. Common small stars the hitch hike are asterina, brittle or serpent stars. What does it look like?

 

[KSum89]

Oh yeah, it said moderator has to approve..so i think it will end up double posting anyway.

I cant really explain it, its tiny..has black inner body and its outlined with white transparent coating. It lays on my rocks and on the glass. Yesterday it was on the same rock as the urchin now its on the glass at the top level of water.

I will try to take a picture, but its real small.

I had 2 brittle stars too, i took one out not knowing what it was. But another one popped up and its still living in my rock.

 

[Purevil21]

How small? Do they look like this?

asterina star - Google Search

 

[KSum89]

Yup, I just went to the aquarium and its hiding somewhere now. But it looks just like those.

This website is helpful, im glad i ran by it. thanks man.