Toxopneustes pileolus - Flower urchin

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C

cjack

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Sep 9, 2007
158
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Fish Planet, Deerfield Illinois
Okay, before anybody starts freaking out and calling me an idiot, i know that this is a very venomous (not sure if its true venom though, maby just poison) creature and that touching it can cause paralysis and even death.

My question is: does anyone know what sort of algae this urchin eats? or is it just a general forager & scavenger?
 
I would highly highly advise u to take no parts in keeping this at all it is a very dangerous invertebrate and should be left to the ocean or marine biologist trained with handling I personally don't know there exact feeding habits but there from the cook islands and seems like from the small info I know they are going to eat just like most other urchins please stay away from this for ur safety

mr.reef24
 
Awesome, thanks for the info. Unfortunately, it was a case of life or death for the little dude, so i figured id save its life even if i was risking my own.
 
The venom causes severe pain and muscular paralysis that may last around 6 hours. Death from poison unknown, but the pain can lead to accidental drowning. Where'd you find this thing?
 
just remember everyones body reacts differently to poison's some people like myself get stung by a bee no issue some others will die so just be mindful and safe.

mr.reef24
 
Hahaha, yeah its pretty freakin sweet. My boss got it and when he realized how bad it was he wanted to kill it. So i brought it home and its setup right now in a little 5 gal with some rock and a sponge filter. Puffer, your from Chicago so you might have heard of the wholesaler Apet, we got it from them.

The only deaths that ive been able to find have been because divers/swimmers have stepped on them, been envenomated, and then drowned because they couldnt swim. So as far as i can tell, aside from an allergic reaction, these arent lethal, as long as your not in the water with them, but i could be wrong.
 
Yeah, heard of Apet. I think I even worked there for one day.

What is your shop?
 
haha, nice Puffer. Its called Fish Planet, in Deerfield, real small but we make sure only get healthy/really sweet stuff. We actually got a sale April 9-11, so if your gonna make a drive, come that weekend (Im not sure if im allowed to say that on this site, so if not, sorry mods).

Alright, so im sure what the little dudes eating, but its got the stuff coming out its top and is constantly pushing stuff towards its mouth...so freakin werid, but amazing. It didnt seem interested in algae wafers or a piece of plankton, so maby its just a detritavore (eats detritus, sorry for the spelling)?
 
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