What is this?

[Mike Newman]

Does anyone know what this is(not the urchin)? They look silver underwater. They are translucient, amber in color inside when held to the light. Rigid outer, but can be "popped" easily if sqeezed to hard. Seen at many dive sites. Initial guess was an egg. See them fairly often if i look for them. Nice of this urchin to be a pedestal for the photo.

I've always been told that these are called Sea Pearls - and as someone has already remarked they are the largest single-celled organisms known to science....

 

[kidspot]

Makomike - Thanks for asking about this as I've been wondering what they are lately as well. Seems like I see them more and more on my dives.

Mahalo, Tim

 

[makomike]

Makomike - Thanks for asking about this as I've been wondering what they are lately as well. Seems like I see them more and more on my dives.

Mahalo, Tim

No worries. I should of brought this to scubaboard a long time ago! Funny, my first few dives on maui I saw some and i thought wow this must be some kind of rock with high metal content cause by the volcanic eruption. I couldn't touch it it was in a tight spot. The first time i touched it, i touched to hard and it "deflated" a bit. I felt so bad, i thought i may have killed an egg of some marine animal. :11:

For years now I have asked other instructors around(just a handfull probably) and they know of what i am talking about, but also thought it may be an egg of some kind. Seems very funny to me now. Sea pearl seems so popular that even a company uses the name. Now we know.