Common sand dollar
Echinarachnius parma, the common sand dollar, is a species of sand dollar native to the Northern Hemisphere.
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Filter feederDe
DetritivoreDetritivores (also known as detrivores, detritophages, detritus feeders, or detritus eaters) are organisms that obtain nutrients by consuming detri...
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Deposit feederCr
CrawlingOv
OviparousOviparous animals are female animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive...
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Not a migrantAnimals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents.
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starts withThe tests (shells) of these sand dollars are round, flat and disc-like, typically measuring 3 inches (7.6 cm) in diameter. The entire shell is also covered with maroon-colored moveable spines. The color is a purplish brown, becoming bleached white when washed ashore. As in other echinoderms, five radial furrows branch from the mouth on the animal's underside.
This and other species of Echinarachnius have been around since the Pliocene epoch.
It is found in the North Pacific and Northwest Atlantic, on the North American east coast from New Jersey north, as well as in Alaska, Siberia, British Columbia, and Japan. It inhabits isolated areas on sandy bottoms below the low tide level down to a depth of 5,000 feet (1,500 m).