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examine a variety of echinoderm species such as starfish, basket star, sand dollar, and sea cucumber
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echinoderm
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examine a variety of echinoderm species such as starfish, basket star, sand dollar, and sea cucumber
examine a variety of echinoderm species such as starfish, basket star, sand dollar, and sea cucumber Echinoderms exhibit a variety of body plans. The starfishes are also called sea stars. Although they commonly have five arms, some can have many more. Basket stars have branched and coiling arms. Many brittle stars are quick and agile in comparison to most other echinoderms, especially the almost immobile sand dollar. Sea cucumbers are elongated soft-bodied echinoderms, while sea urchins are globular and spiny. The adult sea lily is sessile, using tentacles growing from its arms to feed.

Basket stars are a type of brittle star, belonging to the marine invertebrate phylum Echinodermata. Echinoderms are characterized by radial symmetry, an internal skeleton, and a water-vascular system. Brittle stars, including basket stars, typically have five long, thin arms that are distinct from their small, disk-shaped bodies. These arms can break off easily but regenerate quickly.12

Basket stars are distinguished by their arms, which can branch multiple times, allowing them to reach up to a meter across. They primarily inhabit deep waters. Brittle stars feed by extending their arms to capture food from the water or mud, acting as deposit feeders, scavengers, or plankton feeders. They are known for their ability to move jerkily and often cling to the seafloor or other marine organisms.1

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4 Britannica Sources
  1. brittle star
  2. echinoderm - Size range and diversity of structure
  3. star - Classification of spectral types
  4. echinoderm - Extant echinoderms

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