Crachat D'amiral

Biology/Natural History: Diet includes sea pens, nudibranchs such as Archidoris odhneri and Coryphella sp, the scallops Chlamys hastata and C. rubida, bryozoans, and tunicates. Has been known to attack the seastar Evasterias troschelii and Leptasterias sp. Predators include the seastars Solaster dawsoni and Pycnopodia helianthoides. May have the symbiotic polychaete worm Arctonoe vittata. This species can move relatively fast for a seastar--up to 70 cm/minute. Spawns March to April. Juveniles often cluster subtidally in masses of the tubedwelling polychaete Phyllochaetopterus prolifica. Grow slowly--maximum size is achieved after about 10 years.

Varied.

Depth Range: Extremely low intertidal to 1200 m. Mostly subtidal.

This many-rayed seastar has a broad central disk and 8-16 rays, has abundant scattered spines on the aboral surface but no pedicellariae. Its color is a rose-red with light pink or white. Up to 30 cm diameter.

How to Distinguish from Similar Species: Solaster stimpsoni and S. dawsoni have much smaller central disks in relation to their total diameter and do not have the abundant aboral spines nor this coloration. Pycnopodia helianthoides has more rays, grows larger, and has abundant pedicellariae, plus its rays are very flabby.

Geographical Range: Bering Sea to Puget Sound; Arctic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, North Sea, western Baltic sea