description Microcyphus maculatus Overview
Microcyphus maculatus is a species of regular sea urchin in the temnopleurid family. It belongs to the Indo-Pacific genus Microcyphus and was described by Louis Agassiz in 1846. Records associate the species with shallow marine habitats, including reef environments, in parts of the Indian and western Pacific oceans. It is a zoological subject for marine biologists and taxonomists studying echinoid diversity and distribution.
help Microcyphus maculatus FAQ
What is Microcyphus maculatus?
It is a species of regular sea urchin in the family Temnopleuridae, an Indo-Pacific group. Records place it in shallow marine habitats, including reef environments.
Who discovered Microcyphus maculatus?
It was described by Louis Agassiz in 1846. Agassiz was the Swiss-born naturalist who later founded the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard, making this urchin one of the many species he named during his career.
What is special about the Temnopleuridae family?
Temnopleurid urchins are known for their ornately sculptured shells, or tests, often decorated with pits, grooves, and ridges. That detailed surface sculpture distinguishes them from many plainer-spined urchin families.
What does 'regular' sea urchin mean for Microcyphus maculatus?
Regular urchins are the round, radially symmetrical grazers that cling to rocks, unlike irregular urchins such as heart urchins and sand dollars that burrow in sediment. Microcyphus maculatus fits the regular type, living on shallow reef surfaces in the Indo-Pacific.
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