Pancake Urchin: November 2, 2018

NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, Exploring Deep-sea Habitats off Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Download larger version (mp4, 16.9 MB).

 

Did you know that, like other echinoderms such as sea stars, sea urchins can regenerate spines that are lost? This pancake urchin (spines and all!) was seen crawling across the seafloor within Buck Island Reef National Monument, north of St. Croix as part of the Océano Profundo 2018: Exploring Deep-sea Habitats off Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands expedition.