Black sea urchin

Scientific name : Arbacia lixula

Sea urchin with a slightly depressed body, covered with black shiny spines. The skeleton is orange, pinkish or brown, and may reach a maximum diameter of about five centimetres.
It may be found on rocky bottoms or on detritus and within Posidonia oceanica meadows, up to fifty meters of depth, usually in well enlightened areas.
It grazes algal bio film from the rocks.

Black sea urchin Author FEDERICO BETTI Id: 1