Got stung by a white and purple sea urchin.

[Spoon]

one of the spines entered my glove and pierced my skin. almost bit my mouthpiece off the pain was excruciating. was like lava was entering me. was pretty bad for 5 mins but pain subsided. is that a reaction to the sting or was there actually venom involved?

[Snowbear]

It's technically NOT the urchin doing the "stinging"... they are pretty slow movers, so don't tend to chase after divers' hands ;)

Anyhow, if a diver happens to push a body part onto one or more of the urchin's spines, there is a mild toxin that can cause much stinging and burning to said body part :11: When you exit the water, make sure all of the spine is, in fact, removed from the wound... any left in there can cause a nasty infection!

[Spoon]

It's technically NOT the urchin doing the "stinging"... they are pretty slow movers, so don't tend to chase after divers' hands ;)



howd you know:) hehe this was a bit diff. i swear that thing stung me i was just watching it:)

[archman]

I would be interested in knowing what species of urchin this was. Only a few possess venom.

[TSandM]

I can't remember the exact name --something like banded urchin -- but there is a purple and white urchin in the Hawaiian Islands that is venomous, and the venom causes extreme pain and can cause systemic symptoms.