Mottled Star

Fascinating facts about the Mottled Star

• The mottled star can grow to a radius of up to 28 centimetres, giving it a considerable span for a five-armed starfish. Its central disc remains relatively small, from which five long, narrow arms extend outward. The arms reach their greatest width a short distance from the disc edge, creating a distinct silhouette. This size and arm shape allow the star to cover a broad area while hunting on rocks and pebbles.
• The mottled star is a predator that feeds largely on bivalve molluscs, using its tube feet to grip the two shells tightly. It then exerts enough traction to pull the valves apart, creating a gap wide enough to wedge part of its stomach inside. Once inserted, digestive enzymes break down the soft tissues, which the starfish then sucks out before withdrawing its stomach. This method lets it exploit hard-shelled prey that many other predators cannot handle.
• The scale worm Arctonoe fragilis often lives on the surface of the mottled star or within one of its ambulacral grooves, forming a commensal relationship. The worm gains protection and a mobile habitat by clinging to the star's spiny exterior.
• The parasitic ciliate Orchitophrya stellarum uses the mottled star as one of its several hosts. It remains hidden among the star's spines until the star reaches breeding condition, at which point it slips inside, likely through a gonopore. Once inside, the ciliate travels to the male gonads and consumes the sperm, thereby castrating its host and preventing reproduction.
• In sheltered bays the mottled star becomes the dominant sea-star, largely displacing the usually common purple sea star. These calm coastal habitats are where the star is most often found on rocks and pebbles, sometimes on sand, at depths down to about 75 metres. Its distribution stretches from the Pribilof Islands in Alaska to Monterey Bay, although it is rarely seen south of Puget Sound, allowing it to fill this niche across a broad north-western Pacific range.

Sources

Every fact above was checked against these pages, and kept only where one of them states it.

• Wikipedia

At a glance

About the Mottled Star

In the dark, mysterious depths of the ocean, the Mottled Star glides effortlessly, its arms rippling like a ghostly apparition as it navigates the rocky terrain with an ethereal elegance. With a mottled, camouflage-like complexion that blends seamlessly into the surrounding landscape, this enigmatic creature moves unseen, a master of stealth and deception, as it searches for unsuspecting prey to snatch with its suction-cupped feet. As it traverses the seafloor, the Mottled Star leaves a trail of subtle, whispered movements, a testament to its remarkable adaptability and resilience in the harsh, unforgiving world of the deep.

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