Echinoids

Abstract

Of the five classes of echinoderm (Fig. 6.1), echinoids are the most diverse and well represented, from shallow waters to abyssal depths. The echinoderm account for 90 % of the biomass even at the depth of ocean trenches; echinoderm are bottom-dwellers except for a few swimming sea cucumbers. They are radially symmetrical in adults, and range from a few mm to more than a meter in diameter and live with their mouth downward-facing.