Mysterious marine Killer forces TCI DECR to put out alert on Sea Urchins

By Dana Malcolm

Staff Writer

#TurksandCaicos, August 20, 2022 – Something is killing sea urchins and while environmentalists in the eastern Caribbean try to figure it out, Turks and Caicos Islands residents are being urged by the Department of Environment and Coastal Resources to be on the lookout in case the fatal disease presents  itself in the country’s waters.

The “die-out event” or  “mortality event” as it’s being described  presented itself in the US Virgin Islands in mid-February this year and affects long-spined sea urchins causing the normally prickly pincushion like animals to deflate, their spines falling flat or sagging and causing loss of tissue as well.

Amy Avenant, Environmental Outreach Coordinator at the DECR explained why the animals are so important to the marine ecosystem.

“Long-spined urchins graze on algae from coral reefs, limiting algal growth and competition with corals. They are therefore critically important to the health of coral reefs,” she said

Those coral reefs make up one of the largest barrier reefs in the world and protect the Turks and Caicos from hurricanes that would otherwise decimate the islands shores.

In order to preempt the disease arriving to Turks and Caicos, the DECR is asking residents to report any sick sea urchins and to share locations and photos where possible.  to our marine habitats.