Feather star, Comastheria sp., central disk with mouth opening.

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Feather stars are a very old branch of animals. Usually found solitary attached on hard substrate the filtrate the water for food during the night by moving their long arms around. These arms look like feathers, which led to their name. During the day the arms are enrolled closer to the body. This picture was taken in the Indian ocean. The coloration of this genus is consistent, typically dark brown with white spots and white cirri. They are usually found in a shallow coal reefs.

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Size: 5656px × 3699px
Location: Indian Ocean
Photo credit: © Malcolm Ross / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: animalia, arm, brown, center, cirri, crinoidea, dark, dive, diving, dots, echinodermata, feather, filament, filtrating, marine, multiple, reef, row, sea, sessil, spots, star, starfish, stripes, underwater, white