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Family: Ophiocomidae
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Bocas Species Database Habitat: All reef zones, seagrass beds, and mangroves. Distribution: Caribbean, Mexico. Natural History Notes: O. echinata is particularly pominent in coral rubble. The species can tolerate significant physical stress and has been observed to suffer only minimal losses following severe weather. High temperatures in the shallow intertidal, however, can be fatal for some individuals during midday low tides. Juveniles are found in filamentous algae. O. echinata rarely leaves its shelter, and exposes its arms only between dusk and dawn for feeding. Stomach contents primarily consist of sand and fleshy algae. The species becomes significantly paler in color at night than during the day. Individuals within populations of the species have asynchronous breeding cycles. In Panama, the spawning season may shift from the rainy season to other months according to locality. An estimated 888,000 eggs are contained in the 22 mm dark reddish ovaries of a breeding female. Each egg is approximaately 0.07 mm in diameter. Depth: Intertidal to 24m Characteristics: Individuals can reach 32 mm in disk diameter with 150 mm arms. The disk is black, brown and gray and patterning is irregular and sometimes bold. The disk is granule-covered. Arms are the same colors as the disk and are banded or variegated. The species can be distunguished from Caribbean congeners by its white tube feet and thickened dorsal arm spines. Juveniles are almost entirely black, with white-tipped radial sheilds and white bands on the arms. |