New Sea Urchin Species Discovered on Ebay Listing
Posted on August 18, 2006
The Guardian reports that a new species of sea urchin has been discovered on an eBay auction listing. Simon Coppard from the Natural History Museum in London made the discovery after being asked to identify the species. Coppard named the species Coelopleurus exquisitus after the urchin's colorful markings. Apparently, Coppard is often asked by collectors to identify species that are being sold on eBay.
It is not the first time that descriptions of goods on eBay have been less than accurate, but this time the sellers could be forgiven: the sea urchin up for sale was of a species new to science.Close investigation by Simon Coppard of the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature at the Natural History Museum in London, showed that the urchins, which came from the seas around the islands of New Caledonia in the Pacific, did not belong to any known species. He named them Coelopleurus exquisitus after the colourful markings on the creatures' spines and shell.
Sea urchins regularly appear for sale on the web and it is not uncommon for scientists to get emails from confused collectors asking for help in discerning exactly what species they have. However, large numbers appearing for sale recently led to an explosion of interest. "Every week I'd get collectors contacting me and asking me to identify the species," Dr Coppard told New Scientist.