Sunflower Seastar

The cold, clear waters of Desolation Sound are home to many types of starfish. On a recent trip to Lund I found this Sunflower Seastar right in the harbour.

Sunflower Seastars have from 15-26 arms (rays) and can grow up to 1 metre (3 feet) in diameter. They are predators of the ocean floor of the intertidal and subtidal zones and eat sea urchins, clams, snails, abalone, sea cucumbers and other sea stars. With over 15,000 tube feet they can "scoot" along at about one metre per minute. If attacked, they can shed arms to get away. Regeneration takes just a few weeks. Now that's a neat trick! - Margy