The regular sea urchin, Strongylocentrotus pallidus (G.O. Sars, 1871), is a widespread epibenthic species in high-Arctic waters. However, little is known about its distribution, standing stock, population dy- namics and production. In the northern Barents Sea, S. pallidus was recorded on seabed still photographs at 10 out of 11 stations in water depths of 80-360 m. Mean abundances along photographic transects of 150-300 m length ranged between <0.1 and 14.7 ind. m )2 yielding a grand average of 3.6 ind. m )2 . The small-scale distri- bution along the transects was patchy, with densities varying from nil to an overall maximum of 25.5 ind. m )2 , and exhibited a significant relation to the number of stones present. Sea urchin test diameters, measured on scaled photographs, extended from 7 to 90 mm. Median values at single stations varied from 14 to 46 mm, showing a significant inverse relationship to water depth. Biomass, estimated by combining photo- graphic abundances, size frequencies and a size-mass function established with trawled specimens, ranged between <0.1 and 3.0 g ash-free dry mass m )2 , aver- aging about 1.0 g ash free dry mass m )2 . An analysis of skeletal growth bands in genital plates was carried out with 143 trawled individuals ranging in test diameter (D) from 4 to 48 mm. Assuming these bands to represent annual growth marks, the ages of the specimens ana- lysed ranged between 3 and 42 years. A von BertalanAy function was fitted to size-at-age data to model indi- vidual growth pattern (D¥ a 102.3 mm, k a 0.011 year )1 ,t 0 a 0.633 year). The annual mortality rate Z of the population in the northern Barents Sea was esti- mated from a size-converted catch curve to be 0.08 year )1 . Applying the weight-specific growth rate method, the average P/B ratio and the mean annual production of this population were estimated as 0.07 year )1 and 0.076 g AFDM m )2 year )1 , respectively. In conclusion, S. pallidus is characterized by slow growth, low mor- tality, high longevity and low productivity. Because of its relatively high biomass, it is considered to contribute significantly to total benthic standing stock and carbon flux in the study area.