Leptasterias aequalis

Leptasterias aequalis
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Echinodermata
Class:	Asteroidea
Order:	Forcipulatida
Family:	Asteriidae
Genus:	Leptasterias
Species:	L. aequalis
Binomial name
Leptasterias aequalis (Stimpson, 1862)

Leptasterias aequalis, common names little six-rayed seastar or six-armed star, is a species of starfish.

This is a small species, with a total width of only about 5 centimetres (2.0 in). The coloration is extremely variable.

This seastar is found in the eastern Pacific Ocean, from Washington to Southern California. It lives on rocky shores, in the mid-intertidal zone.

Many sea-stars broadcast-spawn their embryos, where fertilization occurs in the water column; however, Leptasterias species brood their embryos locally. The stars form mating aggregations and the female sits on her brood for a period of 6–8 weeks while the embryos develop underneath. Eventually the embryos fully metamorphose into juvenile sea-stars and walk away, and thus can only locally disperse. Larger females produce larger embryos of great quality; however, as larger broods are produced, a considerable proportion of them are lost.^[1]

References[]

External links[]

• Much good information at: [1]
• CalPhoto image 1: [2]
• CalPhoto image 2: [3]

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