Antedon mediterranea is a feather-star of up to 20 cm in diameter. It has
10 feathery branched arms and between 25 to 30 cirri. Its color is variable: white, yellow, brown or
red. It is attached temporarily to other invertebrates (sponges, sea-fans) or to hard substrata by
means of its cirri, generally
in current-swept areas where it can catch plankton with its extended arms.
It is present from surface to 80 m deep in the Mediterranean Sea.
Phylum Echinodermata, class Crinoidea, order Comatulida, family Antedonidae, Antedon mediterranea (Lamarck, 1816).
Cirri: Articulated prehensive extensions arising from the lower surface of the central disc used to cling on hard substrata.
Photograph: © Wilfried Bay-Nouailhat. Published with author's kind permission.
Antedon mediterranea, Illes Medes, Costa Brava, East of Spain. Depth 18 meters.
Text: Anne Bay-Nouailhat © 2005-2008.
Translation: Anne Bay-Nouailhat © 2007-2008.
