Biodiversity & Conservation

Seven-armed starfish - Luidia ciliaris

Luidia ciliaris

Image Sue Scott - Luidia ciliaris. Image width ca 60 cm.
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Distribution map

Luidia ciliaris recorded (dark blue bullet) and expected (light blue bullet) distribution in Britain and Ireland (see below)

Why do the maps differ?

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Luidia ciliaris is not listed under any importance categories.

Taxonomy icon Taxonomy Taxon English term
Phylum Echinodermata Starfish, brittlestars, sea urchins & sea cucumbers
Class Stelleroidea Starfish, sea stars, cushion stars and brittlestars
Authority (Philippi, 1837)
Recent synonyms None
Map icon Recorded Distribution in Britain and Ireland Occurs around the north, west and southwest coasts of Britain and all around the Irish coast.
Habitat information icon Habitat information Found on sand, gravel, mixed sediments and rock from the lower shore to about 400 m. May partly burrow into soft sediments.
Text page icon Description Luidia ciliaris is a large starfish, typically 40 cm across and occasionally up to 60 cm. It is red, orange-brown or yellow in colour and lighter on the underside. There are seven long arms that are a constant width along their length, tapering only at their outer end. A fringe of short white spines projects down the margins of each arm. The tube feet are long and have no suckers.
Identifying features
  • A large starfish, typically up to 40 cm in diameter, may occasionally reach 60 cm.
  • Orange-brown or reddish in colour and lighter on the underside.
  • 7 long arms that taper only at their outer ends.
  • A conspicuous fringe of stiff, white spines projects from the margins of each arm.
  • The tube feet are long and have no suckers.
Additional information icon Additional information Luidia ciliaris is a fragile species and may have arms that vary in width or length due to their regeneration.

This review can be cited as follows:

Penny Avant 2008. Luidia ciliaris. Seven-armed starfish. Marine Life Information Network: Biology and Sensitivity Key Information Sub-programme [on-line]. Plymouth: Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom. [cited 22/05/2012]. Available from: <http://www.marlin.ac.uk/speciesinformation.php?speciesID=3740>