''Promachocrinus fragarius'', commonly known as the Antarctic strawberry feather star, is a species of stemless, free-swimming

crinoid Crinoids are marine invertebrates that make up the class Crinoidea. Crinoids that remain attached to the sea floor by a stalk in their adult form are commonly called sea lilies, while the unstalked forms, called feather stars or comatulids, are ...

. It was one of several new species of ''Promachocrinus'' to be described in 2023. The discovery of the species gained significant media attention.

Description

The team which discovered the species said it was dubbed the 'Antarctic strawberry feather star' due to "the resemblance of its body to a

strawberry The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown Hybrid (biology), hybrid plant cultivated worldwide for its fruit. The genus ''Fragaria'', the strawberries, is in the rose family, Rosaceae. The fruit ...

". Its colour can range from "purple" to "dark-reddish", and it was described as having "ten rays" and "twenty arms".

Distribution and habitat

''P. fragarius'' is found in the waters of

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...

at depths between and . The type locality is at the

South Sandwich Islands The South Sandwich Islands () are a chain of uninhabited volcanic islands in the South Atlantic Ocean. They are administered as part of the British Overseas Territory of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. The chain lies in the sub-A ...

. The dispersal of ''Promachocrinus'' larvae was heavily influenced by Antarctic currents.

References

Antedonidae Animals described in 2023 {{crinoidea-stub