FISHY BUSINESS
Kina Name: Common sea urchin or sea egg Māori names: Kina, Kina ariki, Kina koorako, Puurau
Catch: Like paua, kina are generally picked up by free divers − though with kina you’ll want to wear gloves. The catch limit in Wellington is 50 per fisher.
Scientific name: Evechinus chloroticus
Cook: Kina lovers swear by eating the roe raw and fresh from the sea, but if you're not quite ready for that there are some interesting recipes online − including one for a kina omelette with lemon sauce from Māori TV chef Cameron Petley that sounds pretty delicious.
Looks like: A round, spiky green ball growing up to 15cm in diameter. Underneath the spines is a hard, spherical shell housing internal organs and, in spring, the roe, which is a traditional food for Māori and a delicacy for many others.
Did you know? Back in 2011 diver Stephen Journee set in motion a plan to restore marine life under Taranaki wharf by introducing 11-armed starfish, a kina predator, who worked as underwater 'bouncers' to protect new weed growth. Initial results were promising, but the project lost momentum when Journee left to live overseas. Journee is optimistic though, saying by email that his work is 'back on the radar' and will inform the WCC’s Living City goals for a thriving ‘Blue Belt’.
Habitat: Kina are endemic, and the most common of approximately 70 species of urchin found in New Zealand. They are found all around the coast in shallow waters and down to 15 metres. Feeds on: Kina feed mainly on large brown algae, red algae and encrusting substrate. The kina’s mouth, located on its underside, contains a complex, five-sided dental apparatus delightfully named 'Aristotle’s lantern' which acts like a set of jaws and teeth to grind food up into digestible pellets. If kina populations get out of control kelp forest can be eaten away very quickly, leaving what is known as 'kina barrens'.
If they were human they would be: One of those wonderful characters who appear prickly when you first meet them but, should they let you inside their defences, are full of tender warmth.
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