what kinda urchin is this (pic)?

http://img146.imageshack.us/img146/5515/cimg1462.jpg

About 3/4 inch wide now. came with a rock. The lower spines are kind long and blunt and get shorter to the top.

2010-11-19T13:19:10Z

Got a slightly better pic. kinda tough since the urchin is solid black and rather small. http://img132.imageshack.us/img132/7311/cimg1497h.jpg

No idea where the rock came from aside from out of the LFS, uncured. The urchin hides somewhere in the rock at night and moves all over it's rock during the day. Very territorial as it don't normally leave rock or a 5"x5" square area.

As it's been growing, It starts to appear that it's spikes go in rows vertically like a tuxedo's. A lot of times when it is out grazing on the rock during the day, it will excrete white stuff that looks like large grains of crushed coral sand from the center top. Only other thing I can describe on it is that the spines are not point nor flat but strait with smooth rounded ends.

TheRav1n2010-11-19T09:30:57Z

Favorite Answer

I think it is a Arbacia lixula.
http://www.enciclopedia.com.pt/images/arannna_jk.jpg
http://www.echinoids.nl/Echinoids/Arbacia-lixula/Arbacia-lixula-2-T.jpg

But it also looks a bit like Centrostephanus rodgersii.
http://www.boldsystems.org/pics/EAR/DSC_0006+1181863558.jpg

Or of course, Echinometra lucunter....
http://www.thatpetplace.com/images/presentation/216837.jpg

And a few others...

Do you have a better picture, he is a little fuzzy in this one. Also, where did the rock come from (fiji? tonga? etc)? Is he living in a hole in the rock?