Asterina gibbosa

Cushion-star

   Asterina gibbosa is a starfish of 2 to 7 cm in diameter. Its color is variable: pale-green, gray, ochre, beige or brown. Its flattened body is subpentagonal and armtips are rounded. Only the central disc is slighlty swollen. It feeds on bivalves, gastropods and brittle stars found on rocks.
It is found from surface to 20 m deep, rarely down to 100 m, in the Atlantic Ocean, the English Channel and in the Mediterranean Sea. It is rare in the North Sea.

Classification

 (source : European Register of Marine Species)

• Echinodermata [Phylum]
• Asterozoa [Subphylum]
• Stelleroidea [Class]
• Asteroidea [Subclass]
• Valvatida [Order]
• Asterinidae [Family]
• Asterina gibbosa (Pennant, 1777)

Page glossary

Please contact us if the meaning of one of the words used in this page is not clear.

Authors

Top photograph :
© Wilfried Bay-Nouailhat. Published with author's kind permission : 
Asterina gibbosa, Iles Glénan, South-Brittany, West of France. Depth 6 meters.
Text :  Anne Bay-Nouailhat © 2005-2009.
Translation :  Anne Bay-Nouailhat © 2007-2009.

How to cite this page in publications

Bay-Nouailhat A., November 2005, Description of Asterina gibbosa, Available on line at http://www.european-marine-life.org/30/asterina-gibbosa.php, consulted on 04 July 2009.
Also consult : Terms of use and copyrights