Purple sea urchin
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An illustration based on the real animal.
A little discovery to share.
The purple sea urchin is also sold as food for people.
THE REAL WORLD
The real Purple sea urchin
- Scientific name
- Heliocidaris crassispina
- Japanese name
- ムラサキウニ
- Group
- Ocean animals
- Class
- Echinoidea
- Order
- Echinoida
- Family
- Echinometridae
- Genus
- Heliocidaris
The spines all over its body protect it from enemies and also help keep it from being pulled out of gaps in the rocks.
On shallow rocky reefs thick with kelp such as arame and kajime, it eats seaweed with its hard teeth.
Basic data
- Size
- 10 cm
- Diet
- Seaweeds
- Range
- Coasts from Aomori south to Kyushu
Where the Purple sea urchin has been recorded
Records: GBIF.org (CC0 and CC BY 4.0 records, retrieved 2026-11-07). Map: Natural EarthSee the records on GBIF
Watch wild animals from a distance. Do not touch or feed them, and take care of the places where they live.
Names around the world
- 日本語
- ムラサキウニ
- 简体中文
- 紫海胆
- 繁體中文
- 紫海膽
- 한국어
- 보라성게
- Português (Brasil)
- Ouriço-do-mar-coreano
- Italiano
- Riccio coreano
Names come from Wikidata and iNaturalist records. Where a language has no recorded name, we use the scientific name.
Sources and how we check
- 葛西臨海水族園 — ムラサキウニChecked: 2026-11-03
We check each fact against its source. The illustrations simplify how the real animal looks.
The classification (class, order, family, genus) follows Wikidata records, checked against GBIF. Classifications can change as research goes on.
The basic data are the values given in each source. They vary with how the animal is measured, whether it is male or female, and whether it lives in the wild or in captivity.
This page was translated from the original Japanese with the help of AI.
Report a mistakeEXHIBIT INFORMATION
Places that keep or show the Purple sea urchin
Zoos, aquariums and other places whose official websites say they keep or show this animal.
Kanto
Displays can change with the animals’ health and the seasons. Check each facility’s official website before you go.
RELATIVES
Others in Echinoida
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