Sand Dollars Are Actually alive

Have you ever looked at those white things at the beach and thought they were pre historic creatures?

Looking for alive sea sand dollars at the beach.

I certainly have! Here's me 4 years ago in 2016 looking for sand dollars at Ocean Beach. The sand dollar is a type of echinoderm, which is a group of animals that include sea stars and brittle stars. Echinoderms usually have spiky spines like an urchin or sticky tentacles like sea stars. Sand Dollars are different. They have reduced spines, and a flat body. Sand Dollars are not white, but they are purple. When a sand dollar is white, it is dead. Sand Dollars in the wild burrow in the sand in deep waters. They tend to slant at a 45º angle so they won't get flipped over by the waves. When they are flipped over, they die. That is the reason why so many dead sand dollars are washed up on shore. Sand Dollars, unlike most echinoderms, eat plankton. Their purple hairs help to filter it in. So the next time you find a sand dollar, give it more appreciation.

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