urchin

Not to mention, you could step on a stingray or a sea urchin.

The spike proteins are the little points that emerge out of the coronavirus, like spines jutting from a sea urchin, and the SARS-CoV-2 virus uses them to infect a patient's cells.

For example, they’ve witnessed people wading into the water in the tidepools, a sensitive habitat that’s home to a variety of sea life, including octopus, urchins, sea stars, crustaceans and small fish.

A success at Scripps in San Diego means scientists can run experiments on painted sea urchins, potentially unlocking new discoveries in biology.

"A classic example of multiple stressors causing a regime shift is the transition from kelp forests to urchin barrens in the Pacific Ocean off the west coast of North America," Meunier said.