Seashore Urchin

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While walking on the beach near Dunbar Castle yesterday morning I came across this Common Sea Urchin lying on the sand.  I stopped to take some low shots of the large (8-10cm across) sea creature that had been left stranded by the retreating tide.  After taking this photograph on the Fujifilm X100 I placed the Urchin in one of the nearby rock pools.

Background
The common sea urchin, Echinus esculentus, or edible sea urchin as it is often called, is widespread around all the rocky areas of UK coast. Despite its passive appearance, it is an active predator and is probably the most heavy grazer of sub-tidal rock surfaces. 

 Very few encrusting animals and plants can resist the beak-like mouth of its underparts. This activity can quickly clear areas back to bare rock but unless the urchin population gets out of balance, this is not a problem because other creatures quickly settle out of the plankton and colonise this area. 

 This is a key to maintaining the huge diversity of life in our inshore shallow seas.

For more information visit the British Marine Life website page HERE

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ALL IMAGES ARE THE PROPERTY OF MACLEAN PHOTOGRAPHIC AND CANNOT BE USED FOR ANY PURPOSE WITHOUT PRIOR PERMISSION

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