A sea star is not a fish.
COMPLETE SPECIES PROFILE
Common sea star
Asterias rubens
One species, many connections.
Also known as: common starfish, European sea star
WHY IT MATTERS
One species, many connections.
By feeding on dominant shellfish, sea stars can help maintain diversity in rocky-shore communities.
- Scientific name
- Asterias rubens
- Animal group
- Invertebrate · Echinodermata
- Environment
- Marine
PUBLIC-DOMAIN VISUAL RECORDS
Two additional perspectives
Together with the primary image, these records show behavior and habitat without covering the photographs with labels.
INTERACTIVE TAXONOMY
Interactive classification
Select any rank to understand what the classification means.
DID YOU KNOW?
Curiosities that reveal how it lives
It moves using hundreds of tiny tube feet.
It can pry open mussels with sustained force.
Many sea stars can regrow part of an injured arm.
Where it lives
Rocky shores and shallow seafloors of the northeast Atlantic.
How it lives
A predator of mussels, barnacles, snails, and other slow-moving animals.
Key adaptations
Tube feet provide movement and grip, and the stomach can extend outside the body to digest prey.
Its connections
By feeding on dominant shellfish, sea stars can help maintain diversity in rocky-shore communities.
Pressures and protection
Disease, warming, pollution, and changes in prey can affect local populations.