Pycnopodia helianthoides starfish
Description:
The sunflower sea star (Pycnopodia helianthoides) is a large predatory sea star usually with 1624 limbs called rays. It is the largest sea star in the world. Sunflower sea stars can grow to have an arm span of 1 meter (3 ft 3 in) in diameter.[2] The color of the sunflower sea star ranges from bright orange, yellow and red to brown and sometimes to purple, with soft, velvet-textured bodies and 1624 arms with powerful suckers.[2][3] Most sea star species have a mesh-like skeleton that protects their internal organs.[4] Easily stressed by predators such as large fish and other sea stars, they can shed arms to escape, which will grow back within a few weeks. They are preyed upon by the king crab.[4]
Included On The Following Pages:
- Life (creatures)
- Cellular (cellular organisms)
- Eukaryota (eukaryotes)
- Opisthokonta (opisthokonts)
- Metazoa (Animal)
- Bilateria
- Deuterostomia (deuterostomes)
- Echinodermata (echinoderms)
- Asterozoa ("Starfish, brittle stars, and basket stars")
- Asteroidea (sea stars)
- Forcipulatacea
- Forcipulatida
- Asteriidae
- Pycnopodiinae
- Pycnopodia
- Pycnopodia helianthoides (Sunflower star)
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- Brian Gratwicke
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- Brian Gratwicke
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