Tuxedo Urchin Care...need some help

[Catfish]

I bought a tuxedo urchin this weekend, and its doing really well......and I want to keep it that way. Can some more experienced reefers give me a little care info. I know the basics, but thought there might be some things I don't know yet. The LFS told me that they eat alot, and that I should possibly feed it dried sushi seaweed to supplement its diet. Whats the best way to go about feeding an urchin, and how do I know if it needs extra food other than what it is finding in my tank. I put a small piece of seaweed between the urchin and the glass and it appeared to chew on it, but I'm not sure how much seaweed to put in, or how often. Also, will the seaweed decay and cause my water parameters to go out of wack. Any extra info would be great. Thanks.

[Geoff]

sounds like you are doing fine. you can generally tell if they are eating if you see white lines on your LR. they scrape the algae off of the rocks. what do you want it to eat. most just let them eat what is on their LR. this allows corralline algae to take hold. when urchins eat they scape all the way to base rock. this allows corralline spores to take hold. if you suppliment it with nori than it will eat this and not clean your rocks. if you have an acrylic tank you prolly do not want to feed the urchin near the glass. an urchin will scratch the acrylic easily with its teeth.

G~