@mbari_news: The life of a sea star 🧡⁠ ⁠ With a puffy and prickly body, the spiny star (Hippasteria sp.) is easy to spot on the deep seafloor. These stars roam the seafloor searching for a delicious dinner. And a hungry Hippasteria can be quite particular when it comes to feeding. For some, sea pens or anemones are their sole preference. Here in our backyard, spiny stars seek out prey that is particularly prevalent in the Monterey Bay and beyond: deep-sea corals.⁠ ⁠ While some corals have evolved protective stinging sweeper tentacles to deter hungry predators, spiny stars are determined in their quest for a nutritious feast. They use tiny tube feet to scale a towering coral. When they find the right spot, usually starting from the coral’s base, they wrap their arms to hang on tight, then extrude their stomach out of their mouth to devour the juicy coral polyps. ⁠ ⁠ Hippasteria are important in restructuring the habitats where they live. As they leave dead coral skeletons behind, homes for new animals are created. This natural turnover keeps the community healthy and helps foster diversity among the fishes and invertebrates that live there. #MBARI #Science #DeepSea #DeepOcean

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Sunday 17 August 2025 04:58:36 GMT