Transplantation of the Sea Urchin Loxechinus albus in Chiloé Island, Chile

Abstract

In order to understand methods to effectively utilize the resource of the Chilean sea urchin, Loxechinus albus, a transplantation experiment was carried out during 6 months from August 1988 to February 1989 in Chiloé Island, Chile. One thousand adults at 58.6 mm in mean test diameter showing mal-developed gonads in Linao which was depauperate in algae were transplanted to an experimental area of 400 m² in Hueihue which was rich in algae. The gonad index improved from 8.5 to 13.7 two months after transplantation. The recovery rate of transplanted L. albus after 6 months was 83.0% (90.4% including sampled individuals). The movement range of this species was very narrow. In Linao, L. albus barely gathered to algae put in a net bag; the numbers that gathered were 2, 10, 15, and 20 individuals in 4, 8, 15, and 21 days after providing algae, respectively.