''Fromia indica'', commonly called Indian sea star or red starfish, is a
species
A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...
of marine
starfish
Starfish or sea stars are Star polygon, star-shaped echinoderms belonging to the class (biology), class Asteroidea (). Common usage frequently finds these names being also applied to brittle star, ophiuroids, which are correctly referred to ...
belonging to the
family
Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...
Goniasteridae.
Description
''Fromia indica'' can reach a diameter of about to . When young, it is bright red with black tips (but not always), and can become a duller red at maturity.
Some describe it as "red with a fine black mesh of interlinked lines.",
a characteristic pattern which distinguishes it from the black-spotted sister species ''
Fromia milleporella''. Though this sea star normally has five rays, also called arms, some have been found with six, during the periods of regeneration.
Image:Fromia indica juvenile.JPG, Very young specimen
Image:Fromia indica Maldives.JPG
Image:Fromia indica HI09-0187.JPG
Image:Fromia indica oral face.JPG, Oral face
Distribution
This species can be found in the Indian Ocean and Western Pacific, from the
Andaman Islands
The Andaman Islands () are an archipelago, made up of 200 islands, in the northeastern Indian Ocean about southwest off the coasts of Myanmar's Ayeyarwady Region. Together with the Nicobar Islands to their south, the Andamans serve as a mari ...
as far west as
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...
and as far east as the
Fiji Islands. It can also be found as far north as
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
and as far south as
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
. The known range of latitude is between -23.5 and 18.85 degrees. The longitude range is between -162 and 178.53 degrees.
It is frequently imported for the fish trade via Sri Lanka.
Habitat
It lives in lagoons and outer reefs on all kinds of substrates at temperatures between and .
The animal is found at depths ranging from or less to or even .
Ecology
It feeds on
detritus
In biology, detritus ( or ) is organic matter made up of the decomposition, decomposing remains of organisms and plants, and also of feces. Detritus usually hosts communities of microorganisms that colonize and decomposition, decompose (Reminera ...
,
microalgae
Microalgae or microphytes are microscopic scale, microscopic algae invisible to the naked eye. They are phytoplankton typically found in freshwater and marine life, marine systems, living in both the water column and sediment. They are unicellul ...
, small
benthic
The benthic zone is the ecological region at the lowest level of a body of water such as an ocean, lake, or stream, including the sediment surface and some sub-surface layers. The name comes from the Ancient Greek word (), meaning "the depths". ...
invertebrates, and other organic matter. It has reportedly eaten "weakened fish on the verge of dying."
Nutrition and management of the aquarium
The species appears to be safe for reef aquariums. This sea star may be fed small pieces or pellets of seafood such as shrimp or scallop.
Though it is familiar to most hobbyists, it is not easy to maintain. This is because it is very sensitive to changes in water chemistry and often succumbs rapidly to bacterial infections due to rough handling, poor acclimatization, and starvation.
''Fromia elegans''
In 1921, H. L. Clark described a species of sea star, commonly known as Little red star, as ''Fromia elegans''.
In 1938, Engel collected specimens he believed to be ''F. elegans''. Hayashi studied Engel's collection and finding the specimens to be the same species as ''Fromia indica'', considered the names to be synonymous. In 1971, A. M. Clark believed there were enough differences between some specimens that they should be separate species, and that Engel's 1938 specimens may have been ''F. indica'' mistaken for ''F. elegans''.
Marsh doubted this in 1977, though she didn't have evidence. Engel's description is now considered a synonym,
and informally a
forma,
of ''Fromia indica'', while H. L. Clark's description is accepted as a full species.
References
External links
*
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2254432
indica
Starfish described in 1869