''Leptasterias pusilla'' is a small, six-rayed

sea star 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 ...

Description

"A dainty little six-rayed seastar with a total arm spread usually under 2 cm."Ricketts, Edward, et al. (1985). ''Between Pacific tides.'' Stanford University Press, 60-61. .

Distribution

"The genus ''Leptasterias'' originates in the Arctic,"Himmelman, J.H., et al. "Brooding behaviour of the northern sea star ''Leptasterias polaris''." ''Marine Biology.'' 1982;68(3):235-240. and within the United States, this species can be found in the middle

intertidal zone The intertidal zone or foreshore is the area above water level at low tide and underwater at high tide; in other words, it is the part of the littoral zone within the tidal range. This area can include several types of habitats with various ...

of rocky shores of central California, including San Mateo, Santa Cruz, and Monterey counties. ''Leptasterias pusilla'' is "...generally believed to be the most abundant species in the subgenus 'Hexasterias''along the North American Pacific coast from central California to southern Alaska."Hrincevich, Adam, et al
"Phylogenetic Analysis of Molecular Lineages in a Species-Rich Subgenus of Sea Stars (Leptasterias Subgenus Hexasterias)."
''Amer Zool.'' 2000;40:365–374.

Behavior

''Leptasterias pusilla'' may be quite numerous in the middle intertidal zone of rocky shores, typically moving around on the top of rocks at night after hiding under them during the day.

Diet

Poikilotherm A poikilotherm () is an animal (Greek ''poikilos'' – 'various', 'spotted', and ''therme'' – 'heat') whose internal temperature varies considerably. Poikilotherms have to survive and adapt to environmental stress. One of the most important s ...

s primarily feed on small

gastropods Gastropods (), commonly known as slugs and snails, belong to a large taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda (). This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, freshwater, and from the land. Ther ...

, with only minimal

metabolic Metabolism (, from ''metabolē'', "change") is the set of life-sustaining chemical reactions in organisms. The three main functions of metabolism are: the conversion of the energy in food to energy available to run cellular processes; the ...

rate fluctuations in response to changes in

ambient temperature Room temperature, colloquially, denotes the range of air temperatures most people find comfortable indoors while dressed in typical clothing. Comfortable temperatures can be extended beyond this range depending on humidity, air circulation, and ...

.Fuhrman, Geraldine
"Oxygen consumption of animals and tissues as a function of temperature."
''The Journal of General Physiology.'' 1958:715-722.

Reproduction

The ''Leptasterias pusilla'' "...breeding habits are famous." The mother keeps the eggs and larvae in

brood Brood may refer to: Nature * Brood, a collective term for offspring * Brooding, the incubation of bird eggs by their parents * Bee brood, the young of a beehive * Individual broods of North American periodical cicadas: ** Brood X, the largest br ...

clusters around her mouth area until the larvae reach adult form. " Ovigerous females may be found in January and February, with the minute offspring seen in tide pools during February and March."

References

External links

* Hinton, Sam

''Scripps Institution of Oceanography Archives.'' 1969. {{Taxonbar, from=Q2300056 pusilla Animals described in 1930