Sunflower Sea Star
by Eva Lechner
Title
Sunflower Sea Star
Artist
Eva Lechner
Medium
Photograph - Photograph/and Digital Work
Description
Pycnopodia helianthoides, commonly known as the sunflower sea star, is a large sea star found in the northeast Pacific. It is among the largest sea stars in the world (but not quite the largest), with a maximum arm span of 1 m (3.3 ft). Sunflower sea stars usually have 16 to 24 limbs; their color can vary widely. They are predatory, feeding mostly on sea urchins, clams, snails, and other small invertebrates.
Sunflower sea stars can grow to have an arm span of 1 m (3.3 ft) in diameter.[2] Their color ranges from bright orange, yellow and red to brown and sometimes to purple, with soft, velvet-textured bodies and 16 to 24 arms with powerful suckers. Most sea star species have a mesh-like skeleton to protect their internal organs.
Sunflower sea stars are common in the northeast Pacific from Alaska to Southern California, and are largest in Puget Sound, British Columbia and Alaska.They generally inhabit low subtidal and intertidal areas rich in seaweed or kelp. They do not venture into high- and mid-tide areas because their body structure is fleshy and requires water to support it.
Original fine art photography(taken in Sea Life Center,Seward,Alaska)and digital work by Eva Lechner
Uploaded
March 17th, 2018
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Viewed 541 Times - Last Visitor from Beverly Hills, CA on 04/22/2024 at 10:24 PM
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