Novodinia antillensis
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| Novodinia antillensis | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Echinodermata |
| Class: | Asteroidea |
| Order: | Brisingida |
| Family: | Brisingidae |
| Genus: | Novodinia |
| Species: | N. antillensis |
| Binomial name | |
| Novodinia antillensis (A.H. Clark, 1934) [1] | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
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Novodinia antillensis, the velcro sea star, is a species of starfish in the family Brisingidae. It is found in the deep sea in the tropical and subtropical western Atlantic Ocean, being quite common at a depth of around 500 m (1,640 ft) on the Mesoamerican Reef off Roatán, Honduras.[2]
This starfish has ten to fourteen long tapering arms with distinctive large eyespots on the tips. These are each composed of about a hundred complex ocelli; on close examination these structures were found to be virtually devoid of sensory structures and may be non-functional.[3] The disc and arms of this starfish are clad in spines, themselves armed with pedicellariae (small claw or wrench-shaped organs).[4]