Glyptocidaridae

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Glyptocidaridae
Glyptocidaris crenularis.jpg
Glyptocidaris crenularis
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Echinodermata
Class: Echinoidea
Order: Stomopneustoida
Family: Glyptocidaridae
Jensen, 1982
Genera

Glyptocidaris

Glyptocidaridae is a family of sea urchins in the order Stomopneustoida. It contains a single genus, Glyptocidaris , described by Alexander Agassiz in 1864, with one extant species, Glyptocidaris crenularis. [1] M. Jensen erected the family in 1982 on the basis of a cladistic analysis of Euechinoidea. [2] The species is found in the northwest Pacific Ocean, from Japan to Korea and northern China. [3] [4]

Contents

Taxonomy

Alexander Agassiz described the genus Glyptocidaris and its type species G. crenularis in 1864, based on specimens collected by Dr. W. Stimpson during the North Pacific Exploring and Surveying Expedition. [5] Its syntype (MCZ 1105) was collected from Hakodate, Japan. [3]

Glyptocidaris was long classified as the sole living representative of the order Phymosomatoida, because its tubercles are imperforate and crenulate, features shared with phymosomatoid sea urchins. [6] However, its ambulacral plate compounding resembles that of stomopneustid sea urchins rather than phymosomatoids, and it has a small hemicyclic apical disc attached to the corona, unlike the large monocyclic disc typical of Phymosomatoida. [6] Jensen erected the family Glyptocidaridae in 1982, and Kroh and Smith confirmed its placement in Stomopneustoida in 2010 following a phylogenetic analysis of 169 taxa and 306 skeletal characters. [2] [6]

Stomopneustoida contains only two extant families: Glyptocidaridae and Stomopneustidae, each with a single living species. [6]

Synonyms

Several names have been placed in synonymy with Glyptocidaris: [1]

G. crenularis has also been placed in two other genera: [3]

A fossil subspecies, Glyptocidaris crenularis stenozona Nisiyama, 1966, has been described. [3]

Description

Glyptocidaris crenularis has a moderately sized, low hemispherical test with a roughly pentagonal outline. [7] Adults reach a test diameter of about 60–67 mm and a body weight of roughly 70–96 g under laboratory conditions. [8] Each ambulacral plate consists of three primary plates and two demi-plates, a structure that distinguishes the genus from both phymosomatoids and other stomopneustids. [4] Ambulacra are almost half as broad as the interambulacra, and narrow bare lines run along the midlines of both ambulacral and interambulacral zones from the apical system nearly to the ambitus. [4]

The tubercles are imperforate and crenulate. [6] Globiferous pedicellariae have long terminal hooks, and the stalks bear one to six lateral processes covered by membranes, giving them a fin-like appearance. [4]

Distribution and habitat

Glyptocidaris crenularis occurs in the northwest Pacific Ocean. In Japan it has been recorded along the coasts of Hokkaido and northern Honshu, including the Tsugaru Strait. [9] [5] On the Korean coast of the Yellow Sea, it has been collected at Daludo Island and Mohang harbour. [4] In China it occurs in the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea, particularly around Dalian. [8]

Occurrence records span depths of approximately 20–150 m on rocky substrates. [9] It inhabits crevices, cracks, burrows, and spaces beneath rocks and boulders in benthic environments. [8]

Biology

Glyptocidaris crenularis feeds on macroalgae, including Saccharina japonica , Undaria pinnatifida , and Ulva pertusa. [8] Like other sea urchins, it displays covering behaviour, holding shells and stones on its dorsal surface as a form of mechanical defence. [8] [10] It also shows a righting response when overturned, with larger individuals taking longer to right themselves. [10] Under high-intensity light, it moves away from the source (negative phototaxis), and this response is diminished by food deprivation. [11]

Long-term laboratory experiments found that individuals living in sheltered conditions for seven years had smaller test diameters and lower body weights than those kept without shelters, though covering and righting behaviours were unaffected. [8]

Reproduction and development

Gonad production in G. crenularis is influenced by water temperature. Individuals held at lower temperatures (12–16 °C) produced gonads with better colour and flavour than those at higher temperatures (16–23 °C), while higher temperatures yielded greater gonad mass. [12] Fertilization is external, with eggs and sperm released into the water column. Larvae pass through a pluteus stage before settling as juveniles. [13]

Experimental ocean acidification reduces fertilization success, decreases hatching rates of blastulae, and causes larval abnormalities including asymmetric development and corroded spicules. [13]

Human use

Glyptocidaris crenularis is an edible sea urchin with commercial potential in China, where it is harvested in the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea. [12] [14] In Japan it is known as tsugaru uni (ツガルウニ). [3] Phenotypic variation in gonad and body traits suggests potential for selective breeding in aquaculture programmes. [14]

References

  1. 1 2 "Glyptocidaris A.Agassiz, 1864". World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 19 February 2026.
  2. 1 2 Jensen, M. (1982). "Morphology and classification of Euechinoidea Bronn, 1860 — a cladistic analysis". Videnskabelige Meddelelser fra Dansk Naturhistorisk Forening i Kjøbenhavn. 143: 7–99.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Glyptocidaris crenularis A.Agassiz, 1864". World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 19 February 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Shin, S.; Kim, T. (2013). "A new record of sea urchin (Echinoidea: Stomopneustoida: Glyptocidaridae) from the Yellow Sea, Korea". Animal Systematics, Evolution and Diversity. 29 (4): 312–315. doi:10.5635/ASED.2013.29.4.312.
  5. 1 2 Agassiz, A. (1864). "Synopsis of the echinoids collected by Dr. W. Stimpson on the North Pacific Exploring Expedition, under the command of Captains Ringgold and Rodgers". Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. 15 (1863): 352–361.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Kroh, A.; Smith, A.B. (2010). "The phylogeny and classification of post-Palaeozoic echinoids". Journal of Systematic Palaeontology. 8 (2): 147–212. doi:10.1080/14772011003603556.
  7. ↑ Mortensen, T. (1935). A Monograph of the Echinoidea. II. Bothriocidaroida, Melonechinoida, Lepidocentroida, and Stirodonta. Copenhagen: C.A. Reitzel. pp. 482–486.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Chi, X.; Sun, J.; Yu, Y.; Luo, J.; Zhao, B.; Han, F.; Chang, Y.; Zhao, C. (2020). "Fitness benefits and costs of shelters to the sea urchin Glyptocidaris crenularis". PeerJ. 8 e8886. doi: 10.7717/peerj.8886 . PMC   7179571 . PMID   32341885.
  9. 1 2 "Glyptocidaris crenularis A.Agassiz, 1864". GBIF. Retrieved 19 February 2026.
  10. 1 2 Zhao, C.; Bao, Z.; Chang, Y. (2016). "Correlation analyses of covering and righting behaviors to fitness related traits of the sea urchin Glyptocidaris crenularis in different environmental conditions". Chinese Journal of Oceanology and Limnology. 34 (6): 1183–1190. doi:10.1007/s00343-016-5133-y.
  11. ↑ Zhao, C.; Bao, Z.; Chang, Y. (2015). "Assessment of negative phototaxis in long-term fasted Glyptocidaris crenularis: a new insight into measuring stress responses of sea urchins in aquaculture". Chinese Journal of Oceanology and Limnology. 33: 37–44. doi:10.1007/s00343-015-3323-7.
  12. 1 2 Chang, Y.; Tian, X.; Zhao, C.; Han, F. (2015). "Long-term effects of temperature on gonad production, colour and flavour of the sea urchin Glyptocidaris crenularis". Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom. 95 (1): 139–143. doi:10.1017/S0025315414000745.
  13. 1 2 Zhan, Y.; Hu, W.; Duan, L.; et al. (2018). "Effects of seawater acidification on the early development of sea urchin Glyptocidaris crenularis". Journal of Oceanology and Limnology. 36: 1442–1454. doi:10.1007/s00343-018-6317-4.
  14. 1 2 Zhao, C.; Chang, Y.; Tian, X. (2014). "Phenotypic correlations of somatic and gonad traits of sea urchins Glyptocidaris crenularis in two sampled periods: first insight into its breeding and aquaculture". Chinese Journal of Oceanology and Limnology. 32: 344–348. doi:10.1007/s00343-014-3106-6.
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