Ophidiasteridae

Encyclopedia : O : OP : OPH : Ophidiasteridae

Ophidiasteridae (Greek ophidia, Οφιδια, "of snakes", diminutive form) is a family of sea stars with 31 existing genera. Occuring both in Indo-Pacific and Atlantic, ophidiasterids are greatest in diversity in the Indo-Pacific. Many of the genera in this family exhibits brilliant color and pattern, which sometimes can be attributed to aposematism and crypsis to protect themselves from predator. Some ophidiasterids possess a remarkable power of regeneration, enabling them to either reproduce asexually or to survive serious damage made by predators or forces of nature (an example for this is the genus Linckia).

The name of the family is taken from the genus Ophidiaster, whose limbs are slender, semi-tubular and serpentine.

Links

[Classification of the Extant Echinodermata]

From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.