urchins

They feed on small reef fishes, shrimps, octopuses, crabs, sea urchins and lobsters.

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.

Starting in late 2022, urchins had been dying en masse at the gulf’s northern terminus near Aqaba, Jordan.

“You swim through piles of dead sea urchins that until days ago were significant components of the reef.”