But sea urchins' status as a culinary delicacy is leading to their gradual disappearance from local waters, and last week researchers said the Sicilian sea urchin, which resides on the sea floor and feeds primarily on algae, could soon become extinct if urgent conservation policies were not implemented.
Unfortunately, the conclusions of this study are disheartening, said Paola Gianguzza, scientific coordinator of the study. In the marine-protected areas of Sicily, we have not found any sea urchins nor signs of a healthy population. We would need to halt fishing for at least three years if we wanted to preserve this species.
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