Sea urchins are members of a tube-footed sea creature family that includes sand dollars and starfish. To reach maturity, they must brave treacherous, extraordinary journeys. Conceived in the open sea from sperm and eggs released by adults, sea urchin larvae develop small, spaceship-shaped exteriors to help them float to a more permanent home. When the time is right to settle down, the spherical larvae turn themselves inside out, revealing a small, many-legged adult that has been growing inside. Part of KQED’s science documentary series Deep Look, this stunning high-definition video chronicles one of nature’s most spectacular transformations.
If a sea urchin survives the incredible tumult of youth, it’s nearly immortal
Video by KQED Science and PBS Digital Studios
Narrator and Writer: Amy Standen
Producer: Josh Cassidy
8 September 2016
videoEcology and environmental sciences
Watch as wanderlust propels mussels on epic journeys worthy of a Pixar movie
5 minutes
videoBiology
A spectacular, close-up look at the starfish with a ‘hands-on’ approach to parenting
5 minutes
videoBiology
Join massive, ancient carnivores for a rare feast beneath the Antarctic ice
3 minutes
videoBiology
Far from sluggish: the remarkable sea creature that weaponises its dinner
4 minutes
videoBiology
Pearls before squid: how a cephalopod is born, in stunning microscopy footage
5 minutes
videoEvolution
Pygmy seahorses survive by disappearing into the world around them
2 minutes
videoEvolution
Slime trails and ‘love darts’ – on the strange, slow skirmishes of snail sex
4 minutes
videoEvolution
Take a shimmering, surreal swim with what might be the Earth’s oldest animals
7 minutes
videoEcology and environmental sciences
How moth larvae carve out cozy, mobile homes inside Mexican jumping beans
4 minutes