Starfish                                   

curiousanimals.net

     Starfish is related to sea urchins and sand dollars. Their are more than 1800 species of living sea stars. They most occur in the Alantic, Pacific, Indian, Artic, and Southern Ocean. Starfish are the most familiar marine animal. They eat on Mussels for food. It have different kind of body forms and feeding methods.Starfish are opportunistic feeders and some have feeding behavior. They have boney calcified skin which protects them from predators. The colors of their skin could camoflage them or scare off potential attackers. They could have 10, 20, and 40 arms. They are famous for regenerating limbs and sometimes the whole entire body. They do it by putting most of their vital organs in their arms. Some starfish regenerate by their central body to be intact. Starfish has the ability to capture preys outside their body. Using their suction cup feet they could pry open clams or oyster. The stomach than digest it and it would go back to rest. Sea stars have no brain and blood. Their nerve system spread through their arms. Their blood is auctually filtered sea water. Starfish are invertebrats and their diet are carnivore.

     Starfish are not really fish. Their surface of their arms are often spiky. If you flip a starfish over their would be projections of the underside which is called tube feet. The functions of the feet are, one to open up clams and mussels and one to walk on the sea floor. It plays an important roll in helping the starfish get food. Then it extends if stomach and pulls the food in. Starfish has two stomachs. The cardiac stomach is to help it get the food outside. Then the food is transferred to the pyloric stomach.

http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj71/alex_bobo/Starfish.jpg