Scientific Name:
Patiria miniata
Description
Leathery, star-shaped invertebrate that comes in a variety of colors including red, brown, yellow, green, orange, and purple. Has webbing between its 5–8 triangular arms.
Behaviors
Extends its stomach over prey and oozes out digestive juices that liquefy the prey’s tissue. It then slurps up the resulting “soup.”
Fun Facts
Tiny worms live in a bat star’s arm grooves near its mouth and eat its leftovers.
Nature Topics
Related Media
Photo credit: ©Kip Evans
