Galapagos Species Database

The Galapagos Species Database shares the information about the species from our Natural History Collections.

Rhyncholampas pacificus (A. Agassiz, 1863)

casidulo del Pacífico, Heart urchin

Depth: 7-134 m

Taxonomy

Domain
Eukaryota

Kingdom
Animalia

Phylum
Echinodermata

Class
Echinoidea

Order
Echinolampadacea

Suborder
Cassiduloida

Superfamily
Cassidulina

Family
Cassidulidae

Genus
Rhyncholampas

Species
pacificus

Taxon category: Accepted

Syn.: Cassidulus eugeniae Lovén, 1874, Cassidulus pacificus (A. Agassiz, 1863), Pygorhynchus pacificus A. Agassiz, 1863 (transferred to Rhyncholampas), Rhynchopygus pacificus (A. Agassiz, 1863) (transferred to Rhyncholampas), fide Horton et al. (2021)

Origin: Native

Distribution

Map of specimen collection localities or observation records for this species in our collections database.

Distribution: Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama and Galapagos Islands

References

  • Appeltans, W. Bouchet, P., Boxshall, G.A., Fauchald, K., Gordon, D.P., Hoeksema, B.W., Poore, G.C.B., van Soest, R.W.M., Stöhr, S., Walter, T.C., Costello, M.J. (eds.) (2010) World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS). Available online at http://www.marinespecies.org.
  • Caso, M.E. (1981) The Echinoids of the Pacific Coast of Mexico fourth part - Orders Cassiduloida and Spatangoida. Monography IV, Universidad Autónoma de México (UNAM).
  • Hickman, C.P. Jr. (1998) A Field Guide to Sea Stars and other Echinoderms of Galápagos. Sugar Spring Press, Lexington, Virginia, 83 pp.
  • Horton, T. Horton, T., Kroh, A., Ahyong, S., Bailly, N., Boyko, C. B., Brandão, S. N., Gofas, S., Hooper, J. N. A., Hernandez, F., Holovachov, O., Mees, J., Molodtsova, T. N., Paulay, G., Decock, W., Dekeyzer, S., Poffyn, G., Vandepitte, L., Vanhoorne, B., Adlard, R., ... Zhao, Z. (2021) World Register of Marine Species. Available from https://www.marinespecies.org at VLIZ.
  • Maluf, L.Y. (1991) Echinoderm Fauna of the Galápagos Islands. In: James, M.J. (ed.): Galápagos Marine Invertebrates. Taxonomy, Biogeography, and Evolution in Darwin's Islands. Plenum Press, New York and London, p. 345-367.
  • Sonnenholzner, J. Brand, M., Francisco, V., Hearn, A., Luzuriaga, M., Guarderas, P & Navarro, J. (2013) Echinoderms of Ecuador. In: Alvarado, J & Solís-Marín, A. (eds.) (2013) Echinoderm research and Diversity in Latin America. 183-233 pp.

You are welcome to download and use the information found in this page, acknowledging its source.

This page should be cited as follows:

"Galapagos Species Database, Rhyncholampas pacificus", dataZone. Charles Darwin Foundation, https://datazone.darwinfoundation.org/en/checklist/?species=14930. Accessed 1 November 2026.