sea stars
blood star
Scientific name: Henricia leviuscula
Family: Echinasteridae
Phylum: Echinodermata
Typical size: Up to 25 centimeters in diameter
Depth range: 0 to 700 meters
Description: Usually a bright red or reddish orange color, with a rough surface. They have a small center with 4 to 6 long, skinny arms.
Habitat and behavior: The blood star can be found from Alaska to Baja California. They are typically found on rocks, in crevices or caves, and tide pools. The blood star produces a mucous that covers its body which it uses to feed on bacteria and other particles that stick to the mucous layer.
Leather star
Scientific name: Dermasterias imbricata
Family: Asteropsdidae
Phylum: Echinodermata
Typical size: Up to 30 centimeters in diameter
Depth range: 0 to 100 meters
Description: Leather stars have a large center area with five wide arms. The dorsal exterior of the star is a blue-grey color that is speckled with red and orange. Its name comes from the texture of its skin which looks like leather.
Habitat and behavior: The leather star can be found from Alaska to California. They will eat sea anemones, sea cucumbers, sea urchins and other invertebrates.
mottled star
Scientific name: Evasterias troscheli
Family: Asteriidae
Phylum: Echinodermata
Typical size: Up to 60 centimeters in diameter
Depth range: Intertidal to 70 meters
Description: Appears similar to the ochre star, but comes in a variety of colors including red, pink, brown, purple, grey, and orange. This species has five long arms and a smaller center compared to the ochre star.
Habitat and behavior: Found in rocky areas, including low intertidal zones and on other hard substrates where there is protection. This sea star has a symbiotic relationship with scale worms that live underneath it. The mottle star feeds on a variety of animals including barnacles and bivalves like the pacific red scallop and spiny scallop, but are deterred by symbiotic scallop sponges.
ochre star
Scientific name: Pisaster ochraceus
Family: Asteriidae
Phylum: Echinodermata
Typical size: 15 to 30 centimeters in diameter
Depth range: Intertidal zone to 70 meters
Description: Five relatively short legs and a thick central body. The ochre star can be purple or orange, or a mix of both, but purple is more common. The body is covered with raised white bumps in a networking pattern. The madreporite, or calcareous valve that connects the sea star’s water vascular system to the environment, is white or cream colored on the edge of the center of the star.
Habitat and behavior: Found on rocks and hard substrates, sometimes out of the water during low tide. They prey on a variety of species including bivalves and barnacles. The ochre star is a keystone species and plays an essential role in ecosystem health, though populations were threatened greatly beginning in 2013 by sea star wasting syndrome.
rose star
Scientific name: Crossaster papposus
Family: Solasteridae
Phylum: Echinodermata
Typical size: Up to 30 centimeters in diameter
Depth range: Up to 1,300 meters
Description: The rose star may have anywhere between 8 to 16 arms. They are a pink color with a white stripe on each arm where it connects to the body, but may have a slight variation in design including brown and grey colors.
Habitat and behavior: Rose stars may eat sea pens, molluscs, bryozoans and tunicates.
sunflower star
Scientific name: Pycnopodia helianthoides
Family: Asteriidae
Phylum: Enchinodermata
Typical size: Can reach up to 1 meter in diameter. Possibly the biggest sea star.
Depth range: Intertidal zone to 437 meters
Description: Typical color varies between yellow, orange, brown, pink, red, and purple. Usually has 20 or more arms.
Habitat and behavior: Commonly found on sandy bottoms and rocky reefs. Like other sea stars, sunflower stars walk on a number of tube feet located underneath the body of the star. They are one of the fastest moving sea stars, with over 15,000 of these tube feet. Sunflower stars also have the ability to regenerate limbs when attacked by a predator. Good thing they have a lot of limbs! This species has prominent pedicellariae, which are pinchers on the top of the organism’s body that help it move kelp from atop of it. It is a voracious eater with a generalist diet that includes everything dead or alive, especially the kelp-eating purple sea urchin Strongylocentrous purpuratus. The sunflower star population suffered greatly due to sea star wasting syndrome, but are making a slow recovery.