Help Needed: how do we ship Urchins?

[Uslanja]

Good evening eveyone! We are going to ship 12 small urchins, overnight delivery. How do we package them?

 

[GrendelPrime]

if i had to ship urchins i would probably use a thermis with teflon tape to get a tighter seal so u dont have to worry about leaking bags..not sure if thats the right way but thats how i would do it

 

[Uslanja]

Good Morning! We have purchased live rock from the ocean and it came with life on it that we can not keep because our tank is too small to support them. We have a dilemma in that we are not comfortable with just destroying life, so we hope to safely and successfully be able to ship them with out loss. We were thinking that we would place the urchins in a plastic bag, fill the bag with tank water as well as straight oxygen ( we have access to O2 from the fire department rescue kit), place the bag in a sealed plastic container so that if the bag breaks, the water with oxygen and urchins will remain in tact. Then we would place the container in a box with Styrofoam chips and tape it all tight.

Will a high oxygen level adversely effect urchin respiration?

Is there a way to address the heat issue? Freezer packs might drop the temperature too low and if we do nothing, will it get too warm?

We would like to ship these urchins tomorrow if possible, so we apologize for being a wee bit pushy, but any advice we could get between now and tomorrow morning 06:00 would be great!

Thanks everyone!

 

[Eric]

I would use some type of container with a screw on lid that seals so there is no worry of the bag getting punctured then just add enough water so that the urching is covered no matter which way you turn the container.

Package in a box with an ice pack or bag of ice, make sure the ice pack is not touching the container tape or secure it on the opisite side of the box with something in between the container and pak, this will keep the box cool inside but won't freeze them.

You really don't need oxygen although it wouldn't hurt, these things are hardy so you don't have to go overboard.

 

[Uslanja]

Thanks for the advice GrendelPrime and Eric! That is what we will do! In a bag with tank water and a small shot of oxygen. Place the bag in a tight fitting container with a tight fitting lid (screw on if I can find one). Secure the lid and seal it it tight. Wrap the container with several layers of bubble wrap and place in a box with Styrofoam chips and a freezer pack taped to the side of the box. Ensure that the freezer pack and container can not make contact. Sounds about as good as we can get! These little critters are going to be world travelers! I wonder if they have any idea?

 

[GrendelPrime]

good luck and keep us posted on how it went

 

[Eric]

I would just use a good container and forget the bag, if it gets punctured it could leak out and leave the urchin trapped in the bag with not enough oxygen and water.

 

[GrendelPrime]

true..thats why a thermis would work great

 

[Uslanja]

OK on the thermos. I was considering the bag/puncture/trap the urchins outside of the water theory. A thermos is real easy to go with, but I would only be able to leave an ambient air space and not add oxygen. Is there enough breathable oxygen in just the water for them to survive 24 hours? How much air space would I leave, or should I just fill it too the top? A thermos is a very easy container to get at walmart and ship in a box.

 

[goldenmean]

You can find a short little plastic thermos at walmart/target or dollar stores. I have one that some ricordias were shipped in. It is about the size of a bowl of soup

 

[Uslanja]

Thanks Jeff! Walmart was my next stop today, hadn't thought about a dollar store!

 

[1ofManyNguyens]

Not exactly sure what they would be called but those "urine jars" for drug tests and stuff might work...

 

[Uslanja]

Hi 1ofManyNguyens! I'm not sure what those bottles are called either! But I just returned from the dollar store with 2 children's soup thermos containers. We are shipping 14 urchins now, so we'll place 7 in each container, fill them with tank water to within a inch of the top, wrap them in bubble wrap, place them in a box with a freezer pack taped to the box side, fill the remaining space with Styrofoam chips and then deliver it to the United States Postal Service for shipment! We're a little nervous about how they will ship but at the same time excited about the endeavour! Thanks for the help everyone!

 

[GrendelPrime]

np

 

[Uslanja]

Well, the urchins are on their way. We'll rest easier when they get to the other end and we know they all survived. Thanks again everyone for your help!

 

[Eric]

Sounds like you went the extra Pat on the back for you

I'm sure they will be fine.

 

[Uslanja]

We timed the shipping as best we could. They should be in those containers and delivered in no more than 23 hours, hopefully even less. We have photos of how we packaged them on our nano chronicle. That is the tank where the urchins came in on live rock.

 

[Uslanja]

Hello Everyone! Just received word that the urchins arrived alive and none the worse for wear other than a spine in the bottom of one thermos. Whew! We were worried for those little guys!

Thanks to everyone for all your advice and help! It truly made the difference and accounts for the success of operation; "Urchins Flying West"!

Thanks Again. Your help is truly appreciated!

 

[Eric]

Glad to hear it