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Purple Sea Urchin

Strongylocentrotus purpuratus

Photo courtesy of John Pearse

In-depth Information Regarding this Species

Alternate Common Names	N/A
U.S. Range in the Pacific Ocean	Common British Columbia to Baja (Durham, Wagner, and Abbott in Morriss et al. 1980)
Habitat	Tidepools (Anderson 2001)
Substrate	N/A
Depth range (meters)	Intertidal to 160 (O'Clair and O'Clair 1998)
Behavior	N/A
General Temperature Range (°C)	5–23.5 26 (mass mortality) (Durham, Wagner, and Abbott in Morriss et al. 1980)
General Salinity Range (ppt)	Need salinity above 30 ppt (Anderson 2001) 80–110% of full sea water (Durham, Wagner, and Abbott in Morriss et al. 1980)
Maximum Overall Recorded Size (cm)	10 (test diameter) (Durham, Wagner, and Abbott in Morriss et al. 1980)
Maximum Recorded Size for Males (cm)	N/A
Maximum Recorded Size for Females (cm)	N/A
Average Maximum Overall Length (cm)	5 (test diameter) (Durham, Wagner, and Abbott in Morriss et al. 1980)
Average Maximum Overall Length for Males (cm)	N/A
Average Maximum Overall Length for Females (cm)	N/A
Average Maximum weight (kg)	N/A
Average Maximum weight for Males (cm)	N/A
Average Maximum weight for Females (cm)	N/A
Length When Harvested (cm)	N/A
Weight When Harvested (kg)	N/A
Overall Length to Age Ratio (cm/age in years)	N/A
Male Length to Age Ratio (cm/age in years)	N/A
Female Length to Age Ratio (cm/age in years)	N/A
Overall Maximum Age (years)	20 in captivity (Anderson 2001)
Maximum Age for Males (years)	N/A
Maximum Age for Females (years)	N/A
Age when Harvested (years)	N/A
Overall Growth Rate	N/A
Male Growth Rate	N/A
Female Growth Rate	N/A
Overall Age at Maturity (years)	2 (Durham, Wagner, and Abbott in Morriss et al. 1980)
Male Age at Maturity (years)	N/A
Female Age at Maturity (years)	N/A
Overall Length at Maturity (cm)	2.5 (diameter) (Durham, Wagner, and Abbott in Morriss et al. 1980)
Male Length at Maturity (cm)	N/A
Female Length at Maturity (cm)	N/A
Maturity/Temperature Relationship	N/A
Type of Reproduction	N/A
Fecundity	N/A
Spawning Habitat	N/A
Spawning Behavior	N/A
Time of Year of Spawning	January–March (Durham, Wagner, and Abbott in Morriss et al. 1980)
Number of Spawns per season	N/A
Spawning/Temperature Relationship (°C)	N/A
Spawning/Salinity Relationship	N/A
Description of Eggs	N/A
Habitat where Eggs are found	N/A
Days to Hatch	5 (in 10°C water) (O'Clair and O'Clair 1998)
Time of Year when Eggs Hatch	N/A
Temperature for Egg Survival (°C)	N/A
Salinity for Egg Survival (ppt)	N/A
Predators on Eggs	N/A
Habitat where Larvae are found	N/A
Days in Larval Stage	N/A
Temperature for Larval Survival (°C)	N/A
Salinity for Larval Survival (ppt)	N/A
Larval Food Preference	N/A
Habitat where Juveniles are found	N/A
Length when Juvenile Settles out (cm)	N/A
Temperature for Juvenile Survival (°C)	N/A
Salinity for Juvenile Survival (ppt)	N/A
Where and When Juvenile Feeds	N/A
Juvenile Food Preference	N/A
Habitat where Adults are found (depth in meters)	N/A
Temperature for Adult Survival (°C)	N/A
Salinity for Adult Survival (ppt)	N/A
Adult Feeding Type	N/A
Adult Food Preference	Herbivore/Detritivore Kelp, other algae, Diatoms, scavenge on dead animals (Anderson 2001) Brown and Red Algae (Durham, Wagner, and Abbott in Morriss et al. 1980) Will eat chitons (O'Clair and O'Clair 1998)
Food Eaten in Laboratory Setting	Kelp or other Algae Will eat lettuce, broccoli, spinach (Anderson 2001)
Amount of Food Eaten in Laboratory Setting	N/A
Additional Laboratory Findings	Can regenerate broken spines in 75 days Can induce spawning by injecting with 0.5M of potassium chloride or 5–10 mL of air (Durham, Wagner, and Abbott in Morriss et al. 1980)
Environmental Considerations	N/A
Commercial Fishery	N/A
Market	Strong Asian market
Sold Fresh or Frozen	N/A
Style Species is Sold	N/A
Additional Use of the Species	N/A
Shelf-life in Fresh State (days at 40°F)	N/A
Shelf-life in Frozen State (months at 0°F)	N/A
Shelf-life Canned (months)	N/A
Weight sold in Oregon (kg)	N/A
Ornamental Market	Good aquarium species (Anderson 2001) Can damage acrylic aquariums while eating algae off tank sides (Sempier)
Parasites or Disease	N/A
Additional Remarks	Spines are NOT venomous on this species (Sempier) Will create depressions in rocks Spines are regenerated if broken off (Durham, Wagner, and Abbott in Morriss et al. 1980)
Location where Species has been Researched/Farmed	"(Purple sea urchins are...the subject of much research (Durham, Wagner, and Abbott in Morriss et al. 1980)."
Appropriate Aquaculture Systems	N/A

Recent Wild Harvest Data for Oregon
Data from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife

Year	Total Catch (Pounds)	Ex-vessel Value ( U.S. Dollars)
1989	0	0
1990	0	0
1991	0	0
1992	96,883	65,849
1993	34,235	20,808
1994	197,109	105,248
1995	42,359	21,186
1996	675	68
1997	310	106
1998	1,011	412

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© 2003 Stephen Sempier