Thursday, 23 October 2014

Echinoderm Diversity

Echinoderms are a group of totally marine animals that share the characteristics of spiny skin, radial symmetry (usually 5-sided) and a water vascular system for movement, respiration and food and waste transport.

It is amazing to watch these animals move and feed with the understanding that they have no brain!

Check out the diversity of echinoderms that we have found when exploring the marine environment with students.

Basket star dried specimen (Gorgonocephalus arcticus

Daisy brittle stars (Ophiopholis aculeata)

Dwarf brittle star as seen under the microscope (Axiognathus squamata)

Common sea star (Asterias vulgaris)

Forbes' asterias (Asterias forbesii)

Blood star (Henricia sanguinolenta)

Mud star (Ctenodiscus crispatus)

Winged sea star (Pteraster militaris)

Purple sunstars (Solaster endeca)

Spiny sunstar (Solaster papposus)

Silky cucumber or tufted synapta (Chiridota laevis)

Orange footed sea cucumber (Cucumaria frondosa)

No common name for this sea cucumber (Thyonidium drummondii)
 
Green sea urchin (Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis)

Sand dollar (Echinarachnius parma)

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