Banded Sea Urchin

Range: Indo-Pacific region, including the Hawaiian Islands

In Hawai‘i, banded sea urchins are easily identified by the light and dark stripes going down their spines. However, farther westward towards Africa, these urchins can also have fully dark spines. Like most other species of urchins, banded urchins have two types of spines: longer, more visible primary spines, and shorter, venomous secondary spines. These spines are arranged in such a way that, if you look closely, you can see the iconic five-fold symmetry of echinoderms that is typically hard to identify on the exterior of sea urchins. In native Hawaiian culture, despite being difficult to harvest and handle due to their venom, wana are known for having the best tasting elelo, which are the gonads of the urchin. A little smaller than blue-black urchins (E. diadema), banded urchins grow up to six inches in diameter, including their spines.