description Echinocardium flavescens Overview
Echinocardium flavescens, commonly called the yellow sea potato, is a burrowing heart urchin found in the northeastern Atlantic, including British and Irish waters. As an irregular sea urchin, it has a bilaterally organized, heart-shaped test rather than the nearly radial form of typical regular urchins. It lives within seabed sediment and was formally described by Otto Friedrich Müller in 1776.
help Echinocardium flavescens FAQ
What is Echinocardium flavescens?
Echinocardium flavescens is a burrowing heart urchin commonly called the yellow sea potato. It lives in the northeastern Atlantic, including British and Irish waters.
Why is Echinocardium flavescens called a heart urchin?
Its test, the hard internal shell, is bilaterally organized and heart-shaped rather than nearly radial. This body form is typical of irregular sea urchins adapted to burrowing.
Where does the yellow sea potato live?
It is found in marine sediments of the northeastern Atlantic, including around Britain and Ireland. It spends much of its life buried rather than exposed on rock surfaces.
Is Echinocardium flavescens a regular sea urchin?
No, it is an irregular sea urchin. Its bilateral heart-shaped form contrasts with the more circular radial body plan of regular echinoids.
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