Specimen image via iDigBio · BY-NC
Echinaster
Sign in to saveAlso known as Echinaster Müller & Troschel, 1840
Echinaster is a well-studied and common genus of starfish containing ~30 species and is the second-largest genus found within the family Echinasteridae. The genera Henricia and Echinaster encompass 90% of all the species found within the family Echinasteridae. It contains 30 species, however the number of species in this genus is still debatable because of uncertainty within the genera. This genus is currently sub-divided into two sub-genera: Echinaster and Othilia, evolutionary relationships between the sub-genera is not understood. Echinaster are found in the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oce
Species
GENUS
- KingdomAnimalia
- PhylumEchinodermata
- ClassAsteroidea
- OrderSpinulosida
- FamilyEchinasteridae
via GBIF
Museum specimens
- Specimen records
- 1,081
- With media
- 12
- Family
- Echinasteridae
- Collections
- CAS, USNM, NCSM, ALMNH
- Recorded in
- Brazil, United States, Jamaica, Philippines, Ecuador, Fiji, Taiwan, Bahamas
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- taxon
- Parent taxon
- Echinasteridae
- Image
- Zeester.JPG
Show 6 more facts
- taxon name
- Echinaster
- taxon rank
- genus
- Commons category
- Echinaster
- topic's main category
- Category:Echinaster
- taxon author citation
- Müller & Troschel, 1840
- taxonomic type
- Echinaster sepositus
Sources (1)
via Wikidata · CC0
~15 min read
Encyclopedic overview
12 sectionsContents
- Species
- Life history
- Lifespan
- Life cycle
- Anatomy
- Arm regeneration
- Locomotion
- Ecology
- Habitat
- Diet
- Research
- References
Echinaster is a well-studied and common genus of starfish containing ~30 species and is the second-largest genus found within the family Echinasteridae. The genera Henricia and Echinaster encompass 90% of all the species found within the family Echinasteridae. It contains 30 species, however the number of species in this genus is still debatable because of uncertainty within the genera. This genus is currently sub-divided into two sub-genera: Echinaster and Othilia, evolutionary relationships between the sub-genera is not understood. Echinaster are found in the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans, with most species being studied in the Gulf of Mexico and Brazil. The sub-genera Othilia is thought to encompass species mainly found in the Gulf of Mexico and Brazil. Echinaster is often one of the most studied species within the family Echinasteridae and is often used to find evolutionary relationships.
Many species found within Echinaster are red, orange, or pink in coloration.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Echinaster” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.