We have Purple Urchins and Red Urchins in our tidepools. The purple urchins are common to see in every tidepool. The red urchins are less common. The urchins have a beak like mouth called Aristotle’s Lantern.

Their spines are for defense and moving. They will use a rowing motion to move about. They also have tube feet. They feed on kelp and algae. To eat

they use feather like “tentacles” in between the spines to pull food down into their mouth. The shell under the spine is called a test. It is a beautiful and very fragile shell. If they become over populated they have been known to destroy entire kelp beds for food.