Distribution data supplied by the Ocean Biodiversity Information System (OBIS). To interrogate UK data visit the NBN Atlas.Map Help
Researched by | Jacqueline Hill & Emily Wilson | Refereed by | Dr Mattias Sköld |
Authority | (O.F. Müller, 1776) | ||
Other common names | - | Synonyms | - |
A small brittle star, disc up to 10 mm in diameter, with very long arms (10x disc diameter) which lives buried in muddy sand. The dorsal side of the disc is covered with fine scales but the ventral side is naked. It is red-grey in colour. Amphiura filiformis extends its arms vertically 3-4cm into the water current to feed, in contrast with the deposit feeding Amphiura chiajei with which it is often found.
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Phylum | Echinodermata | Starfish, brittlestars, sea urchins & sea cucumbers |
Class | Ophiuroidea | Brittlestars |
Order | Amphilepidida | |
Family | Amphiuridae | |
Genus | Amphiura | |
Authority | (O.F. Müller, 1776) | |
Recent Synonyms |
Typical abundance | See additional information | ||
Male size range | Disc diameter up to ca. 10mm | ||
Male size at maturity | Disc diameter ca. 4mm | ||
Female size range | Disc diameter ca. 4mm | ||
Female size at maturity | |||
Growth form | Radial | ||
Growth rate | 0.20-1.67% body wt/day | ||
Body flexibility | High (greater than 45 degrees) | ||
Mobility | |||
Characteristic feeding method | Active suspension feeder, Passive suspension feeder, Surface deposit feeder | ||
Diet/food source | |||
Typically feeds on | Plankton and detritus. | ||
Sociability | |||
Environmental position | Infaunal | ||
Dependency | Independent. | ||
Supports | Host symbiotic sub-cuticular bacteria. | ||
Is the species harmful? | No |
Physiographic preferences | Offshore seabed, Sea loch / Sea lough, Enclosed coast / Embayment |
Biological zone preferences | Lower circalittoral, Lower infralittoral, Sublittoral fringe, Upper circalittoral, Upper infralittoral |
Substratum / habitat preferences | Muddy sand, Sandy mud |
Tidal strength preferences | Moderately Strong 1 to 3 knots (0.5-1.5 m/sec.), Very Weak (negligible), Weak < 1 knot (<0.5 m/sec.) |
Wave exposure preferences | Extremely sheltered, Sheltered, Very sheltered |
Salinity preferences | Full (30-40 psu) |
Depth range | 15-100 m |
Other preferences | No text entered |
Migration Pattern | Non-migratory / resident |
Reproductive type | Gonochoristic (dioecious) | |
Reproductive frequency | Annual protracted | |
Fecundity (number of eggs) | 10,000-100,000 | |
Generation time | Insufficient information | |
Age at maturity | 3-4 years | |
Season | June - September | |
Life span | 10-20 years |
Larval/propagule type | - |
Larval/juvenile development | Planktotrophic |
Duration of larval stage | 1-6 months |
Larval dispersal potential | Greater than 10 km |
Larval settlement period | See additional information |
The MarLIN sensitivity assessment approach used below has been superseded by the MarESA (Marine Evidence-based Sensitivity Assessment) approach (see menu). The MarLIN approach was used for assessments from 1999-2010. The MarESA approach reflects the recent conservation imperatives and terminology and is used for sensitivity assessments from 2014 onwards.
Intolerance | Recoverability | Sensitivity | Evidence/Confidence | |
High | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | |
Amphiura filiformis is an infaunal species and therefore substratum loss would result in mortality. Recoverability is considered to be moderate - see additional information for rationale. | ||||
Low | Very high | Very Low | High | |
Amphiura filiformis is an infaunal species which can burrow and lives up to a depth of 4cm within the sediment. Therefore, smothering by sediment of 5 cm is unlikely to have great effect although feeding and hence viability of the population may be reduced if the sediment is particularly fine and mobile. Since only sub-lethal effects are likely intolerance is considered to be low. Smothering by impermeable materials, such as oil, is likely to result in death. Recovery is likely to be rapid as individuals move up through the sediment to resume their position for feeding and any fine particles are removed. | ||||
Low | Very high | Very Low | Moderate | |
Amphiura filiformis is a passive suspension feeder. Increases in siltation of inorganic particles may interfere with the feeding of this species. However, the species live in burrows maintained by mucus so Amphiura filiformis can tolerate slight increases in siltation by removing an excess of particles with mucus production. On the Northumberland coast Amphiura filiformis is abundant in an area close to a rich supply of fine sediment from coastal erosion and run-off (Buchanan, 1964). The supply is sufficient enough to produce a covering of fine silty sediment. Intolerance to siltation is therefore low. On return to normal conditions recovery is likely to be rapid. | ||||
Tolerant | Not relevant | Not sensitive | Moderate | |
A decrease in the siltation of inorganic food particles may be of benefit to Amphiura filiformis. It would mean that the relative concentrations of organic material in suspension would be higher, possibly resulting in more efficient feeding. Not sensitive has been suggested. | ||||
Low | Very high | Very Low | Moderate | |
Amphiura filiformis occurs at the infralittoral fringe and in the circalittoral zone (below 15 m) and so is not normally subject to desiccation stress which suggests the species would be intolerant of the factor. However, if desiccation were to increase the species is a mobile infaunal crawler and should be able to move to avoid the factor so intolerance is reported to be low. | ||||
Low | Very high | Very Low | Moderate | |
Amphiura filiformis occurs at the infralittoral fringe and in the circalittoral zone (below 15 m) and so is not normally subject to emergence. However, if the emergence regime were to change the species is a mobile infaunal crawler and should be able to move to avoid the factor so intolerance is reported to be low. | ||||
Tolerant | Not relevant | Not sensitive | Moderate | |
Amphiura filiformis occurs at the infralittoral fringe and in the circalittoral zone (below 15 m). Therefore it will be tolerant of a decrease in emergence. | ||||
High | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | |
As a suspension feeder without any self-produced feeding current, water flow rate will be of primary importance. Individuals respond rapidly to currents by extending their arms vertically to feed. Under laboratory conditions individuals would be unlikely to maintain this position if water movement were to increase to strong (3-6 knots) and so would retract their arms (Buchanan, 1964). A long term increase in water flow rate is also likely to change the nature of the sediment removing finer particles. High density aggregations of Amphiura filiformis seem to be characteristic of fine sediments with silt/clay values of 10 to 20% (O'Conner et al., 1983) so removal of the finer matter is likely to reduce abundance. Therefore, if water flow rate changes by the benchmark level of two categories for a year feeding would be significantly impaired and viability of the population reduced. Over the period of a year many individuals would be likely to die so intolerance is assessed as high. In some circumstances some animals may be able to move to unaffected areas. On return to normal conditions immigration of adults may occur but recovery through re-colonization by pelagic larvae is highly variable and may take several years and so recoverability is set at moderate. See additional information for full rationale. | ||||
Tolerant | Not relevant | Not sensitive | Moderate | |
As a suspension feeder without any self-produced feeding current, water flow rate will be of primary importance. Individuals respond rapidly to currents by extending their arms vertically to feed. Under laboratory conditions they were shown to maintain this vertical position at currents of 30 cm/s (approx. 0.6 knots) (Buchanan, 1964). Amphiura filiformis feed on suspended material in flowing water, but will change to deposit feeding in stagnant water or areas of very low water flow (Ockelmann & Muus, 1978). Sediments may become muddier due to increased settlement of silt if current strength declines. However, at the level of the benchmark it is not expected that populations will be affected and Amphiura filiformis has been assessed to tolerate a decrease in water flow rate. | ||||
Low | High | Low | Moderate | |
The species is distributed in waters to the north and south of the Britain and Ireland and so is probably able to tolerate a long term change in temperature of 2 °C. In Galway Bay long term recordings of water temperature at a site of high density aggregations of Amphiura filiformis showed the species is subject to annual variations in temperature of about 10 °C (O'Connor et al., 1983). Increases in temperature may affect growth and fecundity. Muus (1981) showed that juvenile Amphiura filiformis are capable of much higher growth rates in experiments with temperatures between 12 and 17°C. Juvenile disk diameter increased from 0.5 to 3.0mm in 28 weeks under these conditions compared to over 2 years in the North Sea (Duineveld & Noort van, 1986). As the species appears to be killed only by extreme increases in temperature, an intolerance of low has been suggested. Recovery of normal growth rates and fecundity will be rapid on return to pre-impact temperatures and so recoverability is set to high. | ||||
Low | High | Low | Moderate | |
The species is distributed in waters to the north and south of the Britain and Ireland and so is probably able to tolerate a long term change in temperature of 2 °C. In Galway Bay long term recordings of water temperature at a site of high density aggregations of Amphiura filiformis showed the species is subject to annual variations in temperature of about 10 °C (O'Connor et al., 1983). However, echinoderms, including Amphiura filiformis, of the North Sea seem periodically affected by winter cold. A population at 27 m depth off the Danish coast was killed by the winter of 1962-63 (Muus, 1981) and a population at 35-50 m depth in the inner German Bight was killed in the winter of 1969-1970 and a new population not re-established until 1974 (Gerdes, 1977). Ursin (1960, cited in Gerdes, 1977) suggests that Amphiura filiformis does not occur in areas with winter temperatures below 4 °C although in Helgoland waters can tolerate temperatures as low as 3.5 °C. Low temperatures are a limiting factor for breeding which takes place during the warmest months in the UK. As the species appears to be killed only be extreme temperatures, intolerance is recorded as low. Recovery of normal growth rates and fecundity will be rapid on return to pre-impact temperatures and so recoverability is set to high. | ||||
Low | Very high | Very Low | High | |
Amphiura filiformis is likely to have poor facility for perception of irradiance and consequently is probably not sensitive to changes in turbidity. However, one of the main food source of this species is phytoplankton that does have a requirement for light. Increases in turbidity may limit the amount of phytoplankton available to the brittlestars. In the very long term this would probably reduce growth and fecundity and hence the viability of the population. However, Amphiura filiformis can go for periods without food and at the benchmark level of turbidity effects should not be significant. Also food supplies are also likely to come from distant sources unaffected by local changes in turbidity. Intolerance is therefore, considered to be low. On return to normal conditions recovery is likely to be very high as increased light results in more photosynthetic productivity and improved food supply. | ||||
Tolerant | Not relevant | Not sensitive | Moderate | |
Amphiura filiformis is likely to have poor facility for perception of irradiance and consequently is probably not sensitive to changes in turbidity. However, one of the main food source of this species is phytoplankton that does have a requirement for light. Decreased turbidity may enhance phytoplankton production which may result in an enhances food supply. Tolerant has been suggested with moderate confidence. | ||||
High | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | |
Amphiura filiformis is found in sheltered habitats characterised by fine muddy sandy sediments and low wave exposure. The species is likely to be intolerant of increases in wave exposure because strong wave action can resuspend the sediment and break up and scatter Amphiura filiformis. However, the species is able to burrow further into the sediment and if displaced is able to reburrow. Nevertheless, intolerance to wave exposure at the benchmark level is likely to be high because the species would probably not survive the disturbance for a period of a year. Recovery within five years may be possible as recolonization can take place from recruitment of larvae and juveniles and also immigration of adults from unaffected areas however recruitment is very sporadic and so recoverability is set to moderate - see additional information for full rationale. | ||||
Not relevant | Not relevant | Not relevant | Not relevant | |
Amphiura filiformis is found in sheltered habitats characterised by fine muddy sandy sediments and low wave exposure. Thus an assessment for a decrease in wave exposure was not considered relevant. | ||||
Low | Immediate | Not sensitive | Moderate | |
Amphiura filiformis can withdraw its arms into its burrow when disturbed by noise vibrations in the surrounding water. At the benchmark level effects are likely to be minimal and so intolerance is recorded as low. If disturbed feeding would resume as soon as conditions were favourable and so recovery would be immediate. | ||||
Tolerant | Not relevant | Not sensitive | Moderate | |
Amphiura filiformis is likely to have poor facility for visual perception and consequently is probably not sensitive to visual disturbance. | ||||
Low | Very high | Very Low | Moderate | |
Brittlestars have fragile arms which are likely to be damaged by abrasion or physical disturbance. Amphiura filiformis burrows in the sediment and extends only its arms when feeding. Ramsay et al. (1998) suggest that Amphiura spp. may be less susceptible to beam trawl damage than other species like echinoids or tube dwelling amphipods and polychaetes. For example, Bergman & Hup (1992) found that beam trawling in the North Sea had no significant direct effect on small brittle stars. Brittlestars can tolerate considerable damage to arms and even the disk without suffering mortality and are capable of arm and even some disk regeneration. Intolerance to abrasion and disturbance is therefore recorded as low. Individuals can still function whilst regenerating a limb so recovery will be rapid. | ||||
Low | Immediate | Not sensitive | High | |
Although not highly active, Amphiura filiformis is a crawling, burrowing, infaunal species. Following displacement individuals could crawl or burrow through sediment (Rosenberg et al., 1997) until a suitable site is found. Burrowing through sediment may take more time and energy but predation risks are decreased. Individuals can right themselves if displacement caused them to be inverted and they can rapidly burrow into the sediment. Therefore, intolerance to displacement is low and recovery is immediate. |
Intolerance | Recoverability | Sensitivity | Evidence/Confidence | |
High | Moderate | Moderate | Low | |
Echinoderms tend to be very sensitive to various types of marine pollution (Newton & McKenzie, 1995) and so an intolerance assessment of high is reported. A study of the influence of TBT on arm regeneration in another brittle star Ophioderma brevispina, revealed some evidence of inhibition at 10ng/l and significant inhibition at 100 ng/l. It is suggested that TBT acts via the nervous system, although direct action on the tissues at the point of breakage could not be excluded. If populations are lost recovery is moderate - see additional information. | ||||
Intermediate | High | Low | Low | |
Information about the effects of heavy metals on echinoderms is limited and no details specific to Amphiura filiformis, or any other brittlestars, were found. However, Bryan (1984) reports that early work has shown that echinoderm larvae are intolerant of heavy metals, e.g. the intolerance of larvae of Paracentrotus lividus to copper (Cu) had been used to develop a water quality assessment. LC50 concentrations exceeding 0.1 mg Cu L-1, 1 mg Zn L-1 and 10 mg Cr L-1 for a duration between 4 -14 days of exposure have been reported for echinoderm species (Table 5.12, Crompton, 1997). As some mortality is reported, intolerance is assessed as intermediate. Adult echinoderms such as Ophiothrix fragilis are known to be efficient concentrators of heavy metals including those that are biologically active and toxic (Hutchins et al., 1996). However, there is no information available regarding the effects of this bioaccumulation. | ||||
High | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | |
In a study of the effects of oil exploration and production on benthic communities, Olsgard & Gray (1995) found Amphiura filiformis to be very intolerant of oil pollution. During monitoring of sediments in the Ekofisk oilfield Addy et al. (1978) suggest that reduced abundance of Amphiura filiformis within 2-3 km of the site was related to discharges of oil from the platforms and to physical disturbance of the sediment. Although acute toxicity test showed that drill cuttings containing oil based muds had a very low toxicity (LC50 52,800 ppm total hydrocarbons in test sediment) Newton & McKenzie (1998) suggest these toxicity tests are a poor predictor of chronic response. Chronic sub-lethal effects were detected around the Beryl oil platform in the North Sea where the levels of oil in the sediment were very low (3ppm) and Amphiura filiformis was excluded from areas nearer the platform with higher sediment oil content. However, the authors do suggest that effects may also be related to the non-hydrocarbon element of the cuttings such as metals, physical disturbance or organic enrichment. Amphiura filiformis is a host for symbiotic sub-cuticular bacteria. After exposure to hydrocarbons loadings of this bacteria were reduced indicating a possible sub-lethal stress to the host (Newton & McKenzie, 1995). However, since field evidence suggests reduced abundance some distance away from oil pollution, intolerance to hydrocarbons is assessed as high. Recovery to original numbers and population structure is likely to take longer than five years (see additional information) and so recovery is assessed as moderate. In addition, oil contamination is likely to remain in the sediment for a long time after the pollution source is removed. | ||||
No information | No information | No information | Not relevant | |
There is insufficient information on the intolerance of Amphiura filiformis to radionuclides although adult echinoderms, such as Ophiothrix fragilis, are known to be efficient concentrators of radionuclides (Hutchins et al., 1996). There is no information available regarding the effects of such bioaccumulation. | ||||
Tolerant* | High | Not sensitive* | High | |
Amphiura filiformis responds positively to increased organic enrichment (Nilsson, 1999). In the Skagerrak in the North Sea, a massive increase in abundance and biomass of the species between 1972 and 1988 is attributed to organic enrichment (Josefson, 1990). Rosenberg et al. (1997) also reported that Amphiura filiformis appeared to be more densely packed in the sediment when food occurred superabundantly compared to when food was less common. Sköld & Gunnarsson (1996) reported enhanced growth and gonad development in response to short-term enrichment of sediment cores containing Amphiura filiformis maintained in laboratory mesocosms. Individuals from the more densely populated offshore sediment did not experience enhanced somatic growth (unlike those from the less populated coastal site) indicating a negatively density-dependent relationship. Therefore, it appears that Amphiura filiformis can be tolerant* of increases in nutrients. However when increased organic input results in almost complete oxygen depletion, mortality of individuals will occur although this is dealt with in "oxygenation" (see below). For the most part it would appear that Amphiura filiformis may benefit from an increase in nutrients and tolerant* has been suggested. | ||||
Not relevant | Not relevant | Not relevant | Not relevant | |
Amphiura filiformis is a subtidal species generally occurring in areas of full salinity. An increase in salinity would be most unlikely and sensitivity to this factor has not been assessed. | ||||
High | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | |
Amphiura filiformis is a subtidal species generally occurring in areas of full salinity although the species has been recorded from the Sado estuary in Portugal (Monteiro Marques, 1982 cited in Stickle & Diehl, 1987; Table 1) where the salinity is 26psu. However, echinoderms are generally regarded to be stenohaline organisms and a salinity change at the benchmark level is expected to kill individuals of Amphiura filiformis. Intolerance is therefore recorded as high. See additional information for recovery. | ||||
Low | Very high | Very Low | High | |
In experiments exposing benthic invertebrates to decreasing oxygen levels Amphiura filiformis only left its protected position in the sediment when oxygen levels fell below 0.85mg/l (Rosenberg et al., 1991). This escape response increases predation risk. Mass mortality of Amphiura filiformis has been observed during severely low oxygen events (<0.7 mg/l) (Nilsson, 1999). Mass mortality has also been observed following large increases in eutrophication and subsequent reductions in oxygen (Vistisen & Vismann, 1997). Also associated with eutrophic related oxygen depletion is an increase in sulphide concentration in the sediment, which is very toxic to most aerobic organisms. Decreases in sub-cuticular bacteria have also been recorded following nutrient limitation. Reductions in these bacteria are probably indicative of levels of stress and may lead to mortality (Newton & McKenzie, 1995). However, at oxygen concentrations between 0.85mg/l and 1.0mg/l, Rosenberg et al. (1991) observed the species was able to survive for several weeks. Therefore, the intolerance of Amphiura filiformis to the benchmark oxygen level of 2mg/l for one week is low. There are some effects of decreased oxygenation on the species however. The regeneration rate of arms is significantly decreased at low oxygen concentrations (1.8-2.2 mg/l) (Nilsson, 1999), growth rate is decreased in oxygen concentrations of <2.7 mg/l and spawning is restricted (Nilsson & Sköld, 1996). Therefore at the benchmark level growth rate and regeneration rate are decreased reducing the viability of the population. On return to normal oxygenation levels recovery will be very rapid. |
Intolerance | Recoverability | Sensitivity | Evidence/Confidence | |
No information | No information | No information | Not relevant | |
No information concerning infestation or disease related mortalities was found. | ||||
Not relevant | Not relevant | Not relevant | Moderate | |
No non-native species are known to compete with Amphiura filiformis. | ||||
Not relevant | Not relevant | Not relevant | Moderate | |
It is extremely unlikely that this species would be subject to extraction as it has no commercial and limited research value although dredging operations may remove populations in some habitats. | ||||
Tolerant | Not relevant | Not sensitive | Moderate | |
Amphiura filiformis has no known obligate relationships so is not sensitive to the removal of any other species. |
- no data -
National (GB) importance | - | Global red list (IUCN) category | - |
Native | - | ||
Origin | - | Date Arrived | - |
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OBIS (Ocean Biodiversity Information System), 2023. Global map of species distribution using gridded data. Available from: Ocean Biogeographic Information System. www.iobis.org. Accessed: 2023-06-03
This review can be cited as:
Last Updated: 29/04/2008