Sea urchin fisheries harvest millions of animals annually with minimal welfare consideration despite growing evidence of nociceptive capacity in echinoderms.
Sea urchin welfare occupies the most uncertain zone of invertebrate welfare assessment. Their simple nervous system makes consciousness highly unlikely by current understanding, yet responses to noxious stimuli suggest some form of nociceptive processing. The moral uncertainty argument - that we should give some precautionary consideration to potential suffering even in uncertain cases - applies here. Dredging harvest is likely more welfare-concerning than hand-picking by divers. At the population level, overfishing collapses urchin populations with ecological consequences affecting the welfare of many dependent species. Ecological sustainability and welfare consideration align in supporting sustainable harvest methods.