Echinoidea | 
Camarodonta | 
Echinidae
			
			
			
				Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range				
				
					Ecology				
				
			
			
				Benthic; depth range 0 - 90 m (Ref. 85345).  Tropical, preferred 17°C (Ref. 107945); 55°N -   21°N, 17°W -   36°E			
			
			
				
			
			
			
				Eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean:  from UK Scotland to West Sahara, and east to Lebanon.  Subtropical and temperate.
			
			
			
			
			
				Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age
			
			
				Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm Max length : 6.0 cm WD male/unsexed; (Ref. )			
			
			
						
			
			
			
			
				
					Feeds on marine plants and animal material (Ref. 113042).				
			
			
			
			
			
				Life cycle and mating behavior				
					Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae				
			
			
				
					Members of the class Echinoidea are gonochoric.  Fertilization is external.  Brooding is common, eggs are held either on the peristome, around the periproct or deep into the concavities on the petaloids.  Life cycle:  Embryos develop into planktotrophic larvae (echinoplateus) and live for several months before they sink to the bottom using their tube feet to adhere on the ground where they metamorphose into young urchins.				
			
			
			
			
			
				Koukouras, A. and M.-S. Kitsos 2010 Echinoderms. pp.288-296 In Coll, M., et al., 2010. The biodiversity of the Mediterranean Sea: estimates, patterns, and threats. PLoS ONE 5(8):36pp. (Ref. 85345)
			
			
			
			
			
			
			
					
						IUCN Red List Status    
						 (Ref. 130435: Version 2025-1)
					
					
					
				
			
			
			
			
				CITES status   (Ref. 108899)
			
			
				
					Not Evaluated				
			
			
			
			
			
			
				
					Not Evaluated				
			
			
			
			
			
				Threat to humans  
			
			
				
									
			
			
			
			
			
			
			
			
				Human uses  
			
			
				Fisheries: commercial			
			
			
				FAO - Aquaculture: production; Fisheries: landings | FishSource | Sea Around Us			
			
			
			
			
			
Tools
			
			
			
			
				
					More information				
				
					 Population dynamicsGrowth
Max. ages / sizes
Length-weight rel.
Length-length rel.
Length-frequencies
Mass conversion
Abundance
  Life cycleReproductionMaturityFecunditySpawningEggsEgg developmentLarvae   PhysiologyOxygen consumption
  
			 
			
			
			
				Internet sources
			
			
			
			
			
				Estimates based on models
			
			
			
									
						Preferred temperature  					
				 (Ref. 
115969): 7.4 - 20.1, mean 11.8 (based on 600 cells).			
 
			
			
			
			
			
						
							
				
					
						Fishing Vulnerability  					
					
					
						Low vulnerability (10 of 100).					
				
						
							
					
						Climate Vulnerability  					
					
					Moderate to high vulnerability (51 of 100).				
						
			
			
			
				Nutrients  :  Calcium = 126 [75, 177]  mg/100g; Iron = 5.08 [1.67, 7.92]  mg/100g; Protein = 12%; Omega3 = 0.331 [0.263, 0.400]  g/100g; Selenium = 0.04 [48.48, 67.17]  μg/100g; VitaminA = 0 μg/100g; Zinc = 1.97 [0.92, 3.02]  mg/100g (wet weight); based on 
nutrient studies.