carnivore urchin?

[Corwyn]

Hey group,


I've had a serpant star and a pencil urchin in a 180 for about 1 year.

I noticed yesterday that they were wrapped together and later the star was missing part of one of its legs. This morning they were doing the same thing. I pushed the urchin away and noticed that the star was missing part of another leg.

I thought pencil urchins were herbavores?
If not why all of a sudden is it attacking this one star?
( I have 2 brittle stars in the tank as well)

Corwyn

[Tobyt]

My pencil urchin eats xenia with relish. Well, not 'relish', but with delight. Well, not turkish delight, but with glee. if urchins had feelings. It could very well eat starfish. Serpent stars are much faster than pencil urchins. Not sure why it wouldn't just run away. Maybe it's sick?

[Ken2001]

According to Sven and Fossa, Pencil Urchins "feed principally on algae, but will also take bryozoans, sponges and organic detritus. Will accept substitute foods to some degree, using pieces of molluscs and crustaceans.... Normally does not attack larger invertabrates. Yet, in the wild specimens have been found with coral fragments in their stomachs.... Adult specimens can bother larger invertabrates."
- The Modern Coral Reef Aquarium, Vol 4, pp 335-338

Ken