Asterias rubens

(Linnaeus, 1758)

Vernacular names
English : Common starfish
French : Etoile de mer commune

Classification
Class : Asteroidea
Order : Forcipulatida
Family : Asteriidae
Notes : No subspecies known.

Identification
Adults can grow to an armspan of 12 cm although some deep water specimens can reach up to 50 cm ! Arms have blunt tips. Body covered with rows of white spines of variable size giving a granulous aspect. Color pink to bright red.

Range and habitat
This species occurs in the Atlantic Ocean, from northern Canada coasts, Greenland and Iceland, south to Cape Verde. Absent from Mediterranean Sea. Lives in all kinds of habitats, with soft or rocky bottom, down to 650 m deep.

Conservation
IUCN RED LIST : NOT LISTED
CITES : Not listed
Status : This species has a large range and can be very common to overabundant, to the point of becoming dangerous for an ecosystem’s balance.
Ex-Situ Programs : None known

Observation

 

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