Class Asteroidea Rank Species | Subphylum Eleutherozoa | |
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Similar Astropecten, Paxillosida, Luidia clathrata, Luidia, Astropecten duplicatus | ||
Astropecten articulatus, the royal starfish, is a West Atlantic sea star of the family Astropectinidae.
Contents
Habitat and behavior
The habitat of the Astropecten articulatus varies from 0 - 200 metres (700 ft) and it lives most commonly at the mid continental shelf around 20–30 metres (70–100 ft).
Astropecten articulatus is found in the West Atlantic where it ranges from the United States (both the East Coast and the Mexican Gulf), through the Caribbean to Brazil. It is one of the most common sea stars along the southeast coast of the United States.
Description
Astropecten articulatus has dorsal granulose paxillae that are usually dark blue to purple and orange marginal plates with supermarginal white spines.
The five ambulacral grooves contain numerous ambulacral spines and tube feet. The mouth has a set of five jaws covered with spines. The color of the madreporite is light orange, and it has raised pores that connect to the water vascular system. The arms can reach 2–9 centimetres (0.8–4 in) in length.
Astropecten articulatus has large orangish yellow marginal plates. It has short paxillae that give the aboral surface a granular appearance. Its paxillar areas on the arms are about twice the width of the marginals and are very compact. Fresh specimens are usually bright blue, or purple with yellow, orange, or white marginals.
Feeding
The royal is a carnivore and feeds on mollusks, which it catches with its arms and then takes to the mouth. The prey is then trapped by the long prickles around the mouth cavity. Unlike other starfish, it swallows food whole.