Red Sea Urchin – Oregon Conservation Strategy

Overview

Species Common Name Red Sea Urchin
Species Scientific Name Mesocentrotus franciscanus

Ecoregions

Nearshore

The Nearshore ecoregion includes a variety of habitats ranging from submerged high-relief rocky reefs to broad expanses of intertidal mudflats in estuaries and hosts a vast array of fish, invertebrates, marine mammals, birds, plants, and micro-organisms. This ecoregion encompasses the area from the outer boundary of Oregon’s Territorial Sea to the supra-tidal zone, and up into the estuaries.

Special needs

Red sea urchins occur only in rocky intertidal and subtidal habitat.

Limiting factors

Larval supplies and episodic recruitment affect abundance and distribution.

Data gaps

Determine the ecological role of red sea urchins in bull kelp beds. Describe population dynamics.

Conservation actions

Monitor status of populations at index sites. Manage for sustainable harvest. Gather information to fill data gaps.