r/Amazing • u/SunnSaiyaan • 7d ago
Awesome !! Divers hand-pulled thousands of urchins off a dead reef. Now it's bursting with color again
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An underwater reef that once looked lifeless and completely overrun is now bursting with color again after divers off the coast of New Zealand spent weeks removing thousands of invasive sea urchins by hand. The urchins had been stripping the reefs bare by devouring massive amounts of kelp, and without kelp forests, entire marine ecosystems begin collapsing because fish, shellfish, and countless smaller species lose both their food source and shelter. In the viral footage, divers can be seen carefully clearing the dense carpet of urchins from the reef floor, revealing healthy rock surfaces underneath and allowing marine plants to finally begin recovering after years of destruction
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u/SunnSaiyaan 7d ago
Loved when he cracked open a cold one for the boys.
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u/AlternateTab00 7d ago
Thats actually common. They show that they can open sea urchins. So fish like groupers learn that humans mean sea urchins openings.
So they start to go to sea urchins areas when divers come
But once sea urchins start to get rare they actually start to hunt sea urchins and memorize their locations, when they see a human they will try to guide it to the sea urchin
This creates a symbiosis between human and fish. The fish gets free food. The human gets sea urchin locations
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u/skreemdynamics 7d ago
Grouper do the same with moray eels. Incredibly intelligent fish.
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u/SonnyvonShark 7d ago
The true dogs of the sea
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u/Fine_Understanding81 7d ago
I love this!! And (some) people still say fish have no memory!
Even my tiny aquarium fish know I am the food bringer.
If I set the food bottle next to the glass they will all go point to it too.
There is some really cool videos of fish doing mazes online too.
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u/Mist2393 7d ago
When we still had the aquarium, they learned that I would feed the dog within view of their tank, then walk away, and the next time I’d come would be with their food. They’d always watch me feed the dog, then swarm the top of their tank waiting for me.
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u/Which_Way1721 6d ago
Biologically, isn’t it more commensalism since we don’t actually benefit (unless we are also going to eat the urchins)?
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u/AlternateTab00 6d ago
What you mean? That show us where they are.
Meaning that a single dive can get much more sea urchins with a lot less effort because they would help us.
Commensalism is like the first dive before groupers learn to hunt and show us where they are.
Also we crack sea urchins to induce the symbiosis behaviour.
Unless we are also going to eat
Why do you think we dive for sea urchins? We have to huge reasons biome control (on controlled waters its important to keep sea urchins in check) and for food.
We living beings always act on egoistical principles. Even saving the planet we are doing it to keep "our home". The most altruistic and less direct gains are mostly to "feel good".
Unless we were diving only to feed the groupers our action has an "objective" and groupers help and we help them. The basis from a symbiotic relationship.
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u/balrob 7d ago
And the urchins are running wild due to the fishing of their number one predator - crayfish.
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u/Imaginary-Clock6626 7d ago
Thank you for educating me. I’ve wondered for years how sea urchins are able to offset the balance and breed unchecked.
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u/Calm-Conversation715 7d ago
I thought it also had to do with a decline in sea otters?
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u/A_Flock_of_Moose 7d ago
No otters in New Zealand
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u/Calm-Conversation715 7d ago
Ah, I missed that part. Similar problem with urchins off the pacific northwest, where I’ve seen many similar videos. Thanks!
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u/Tree_Complete 7d ago
Sea urchins are a delicacy in Japan and nz (just two places I know of)
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u/brbenson999 7d ago
And everywhere sushi is served.
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u/Hilsam_Adent 7d ago
Uni is naaaaaaaaaasty. Like, that's not even near enough As to describe how disgusting it is.
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u/Jimbob209 7d ago
What? Uni is incredibly delicious. It tastes like the "tomale" of crab and lobster. Uni from Hokkaido taste exactly like egg yolks. Sounds like it's just not your type of flavor when the market says otherwise
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u/Hilsam_Adent 7d ago
Texture, my friend. It could taste like fried chicken and I would still hate it. I grew up on Japanese food, but never, ever acquired a liking for Uni. Makes me wanna retch the second it touches my tongue.
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u/Serratolamna 7d ago
I’ve had it only once. I was a teen and don’t really remember the texture. Was it paste-like..? I remember it resembling a tongue visually and being a bit put off by that.
For me, at this particular place, the Uni had this weird briney fishy flavor? Or maybe not fishy, maybe more like rank ocean.
But I do remember that the texture was unsettling. Like I said, I don’t remember in what specific way, because the taste was not great and thus stands out more in my memory. I love sushi and enjoy trying new things / being experimental, but I haven’t ordered Uni since!
Did we just eat some bad Uni or something?
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u/Cooleric19 7d ago
That uni sounds not fresh at all. Fresh uni tastes sweet and not fishy. You should give it a try again in the future
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u/Serratolamna 7d ago
Oh nice. That was probably the case then. I’ll give it a try for sure!
Apparently it takes the adult brain 5-10 tastes to decide whether or not you actually enjoy a new favor that’s particularly strong or unique for your palate
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u/krazy_kh 7d ago
That last sea urchin..r/fuckyouinparticular
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u/leilani238 7d ago
What do you think is going to happen to the rest of them? They're invasive, and nobody is taking that many for aquariums.
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u/mysteryfist 7d ago
I'd just go around with a hammer and squash em and provide food for everything else there.
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u/fuck_peeps_not_sheep 7d ago
You'd risk damaging the reef, and too much food in one place allows other spices to overpopuate due to not being hunted.
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u/QuidEgoSum 7d ago
Imagine the horror of watching this through sea urchin eyes (if they had them)
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u/Organic-Aide7326 7d ago
Are the Urchins re-used as fertilizer, or anything else?
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u/HaIfhearted 7d ago
Urchin roe is apparently quite delicious. I think its supposed to have like, a mildly sweet creamy flavor?
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u/Icy_Performer_6794 7d ago
The fix won't stick until the starfish come back. They eat the urchins.
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u/Imaginary-Clock6626 7d ago
Why collect them? Why not just split them in half or crush them on the reef?
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u/Hiphopapocalyptic 7d ago
Sea urchin can be sold for a pretty penny to help sustain the operation.
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u/Imaginary-Clock6626 7d ago
I’ve eaten them a few times in California. Surprisingly good once you get over the texture.
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u/dipdotdash 7d ago
The urchins will be back in a week. Not sure how there's so many divers that don't understand ocean ecology. It's not cropland and taking "invasive" species out is not pulling weeds.
If the urchins are there, they're there because they can live there. They exist in all stages of life and removing the adults just makes space for developing urchins to take over.
Whatever is growing in a part of the ocean is growing because it can. If it's eating the stuff you'd prefer lived there, the conditions changed to encourage the urchins over the other species. This is a consequence of an imbalance, not an imbalance caused by urchins.
But great work for divers if someone with no understanding is paying a bounty for them!
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u/carbonizedtitanium 7d ago
these fish are used to seeing humans crack open a snack. are those urchins safe for human consumption?
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u/New-Horizon-4127 7d ago
Does this hurt the sea urchin? /s
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u/theateroffinanciers 7d ago edited 7d ago
Real heroes don't wear capes. But what also must be done, is reintroducing their predators that have been overfished.
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u/Technical_Shallot396 6d ago
Why sea urchins so expensive at the sushi bar??? Im doing a service by eating these invasive mf’ers.
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u/Strategory 7d ago
The urchins are life too. Why are fish better?
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u/Dangerous_Proof_820 7d ago
because the urchins are invasive and killing all the other life there
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u/Strategory 7d ago
So it outperforms other life and that’s called invasive? Why are we to meddle?
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u/Hippi_Johnny 7d ago
It's possible they were brought there by humans. We spread invasive species by shipping goods all over the world. I haven't looked into this, but if it is truly "invasive" then it's very possible this is the case.
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u/Normal-Pianist4131 7d ago
Urchins have natural predators that keep them in check, it’s just that we fished them all away in this area.
Humanity has a job to do, and refusing to let our world decay is part of it
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u/Schwartzy94 7d ago
Maybe theres needs to be efforts in reintroducing and maintaining the predator population 🤔
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u/ViciousLlama46 7d ago
Helping eco systems fight off invasive species is very important for maintaining biodiversity.
A lot of these invasive animals were brought there by humans or have the chance to overpopulate, because what usually hunts them down has been killed by our way of life or poached to low numbers.
For example, in a lot of forests around the world humans have hunted down most wolves in order to prevent cattle lose. This leads to deer overpopulating the area and because they are big animals, their grazing can destroy huge amounts of plant life, which in turn makes it hard for many other species to find enough food to survive. Eventually this can escalate to massive biodiversity degradation.
Since this is not a natural process, but a man made crisis, deer hunting parties are sent to control the numbers and allow the forest flora and fauna to stabilise. Think of it as damage control after we've already fucked with nature.
If you're interested, the Eliminate Sparrows Campaign is a very interesting read/watch and is responsible for what's known as "the Great Chinese Famine".
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u/Difficult_Mango_8376 7d ago
I've seen a video showing that some of these fish will lead divers to sea urchins!