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Brittle stars, serpent stars, or ophiuroids (from Latin ophiurus 'brittle star'; from Ancient Greek ὄφις (óphis) 'serpent' and οὐρά (ourá) 'tail'; referring to the serpent-like arms of the brittle star) are echinoderms in the class Ophiuroidea, closely related to starfish. They crawl across the sea floor using their flexible arms ...
Starfish or sea stars are star-shaped echinoderms belonging to the class Asteroidea (/ ˌ æ s t ə ˈ r ɔɪ d i ə /). Common usage frequently finds these names being also applied to ophiuroids, which are correctly referred to as brittle stars or basket stars. Starfish are also known as asteroids due to being in the class
Amphiuridae (commonly called long-armed burrowing brittle stars [2] or burrowing brittle stars) are a large family of brittle stars of the suborder Gnathophiurina.Some species are used to study echinoderm development (e.g. Amphipholis kochii [3] and Amphioplus abditus [4]) and bioluminescence (the dwarf brittle star, Amphipholis squamata [5] [6]).
Many brittle stars are hermaphrodites; they often brood their eggs, usually in special chambers on their oral surfaces, but sometimes in the ovary or coelom. [58] In these starfish and brittle stars, development is usually direct to the adult form, without passing through a bilateral larval stage. [59]
By repeating these actions, the brittle star can creep forward at up to 50 centimetres (20 in) per minute. Any arm or pair of arms can be in the lead. [4] Ophionereis reticulata is an herbivore and filter feeder, but detritus and fragments of polychaete worm have also been found in its stomach. [5]
Amphiura is a large genus that is currently divided into the following six subgenera: Amphioplus, Amphiura, Fellaria, Ophionema, Ophiopelte and Ophiopeltis.The once used subgenus Acrocnida has been elevated to a genus rank.
Numerous individuals of these two species sometimes form dense communities with hundreds of brittle stars per square metre. These beds may extend several hundred square metres over sandy and pebbly sediment on the sea floor and contain millions of brittle stars. [9] These can be either O. nigra or O. fragilis, or a mixed community of the two.
Ophiothrix suensoni, Suenson's brittle star or the sponge brittle star, is a species of marine invertebrate in the order Ophiurida. It is found in the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico. It is included in the subgenus Acanthophiothrix making its full scientific name Ophiothrix (Acanthophiothrix) suensoni. [1]