Sand Dollars
Often considered the silver coins of the sea, sand dollars are an interesting type of echinoderm
Sand dollars are kind of flat, sand burrowing subspecies of sea urchins belonging to the class Clypeasteroida, and the phylum Echinodermata. Sand dollars earned their name through the way they appear when washed up on the beach shore, bleached by the sunlight and losing their original velvet color, their appearance on shorelines is often compared to silver coins. Sand dollars when alive are typically colored brownish or velvet and are covered in multiple short flexible spines which allows them to move and makes them look fuzzy, their mouth is located at the bottom of their body like most urchins.
Comparison between a sand dollar that is dead and alive, the dead one appearing to be bleached and the live one is purple in color
Value
Sand dollars are one of the most well known echinoderms due to their unique appearance, the star-like pattern on their body, and their resemblance to a coin. Sand dollars are most commonly seen as collectables sold at beach-side gift shops, and in Christian belief sand dollars are seen as representations of the birth of Jesus, death and resurrection, this is due to the unique marking on their body.
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