Luidia superba

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Luidia superba
Luida superba, dorsal view.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Echinodermata
Class: Asteroidea
Order: Paxillosida
Family: Luidiidae
Genus: Luidia
Species:
L. superba
Binomial name
Luidia superba

Luidia superba is a tropical species of starfish in the family Luidiidae. A single specimen was found off the Pacific coast of Colombia in 1888; the species has since been found in the Galapagos Islands. It is endemic to this area and has not been recorded elsewhere.

Contents

Description

A typical Luidia superba has five long, tapering arms with pointed tips. The holotype, the first specimen to be observed and described, had six arms, which was unfortunate as that led to the belief for many years that the normal number of limbs was six. [2] As in other members of the genus, the upper surface of the disc and the arms is covered with paxillae, pillar-like spines with truncated ends. On the underside there are multiple rows of tube feet running down each arm. [3] The colour is greenish-brown above and creamy yellow beneath, the tube feet being tipped with orange. [4]

Luidia superba is probably the largest five-armed starfish in the world. [2] The largest specimen from Tagus Cove in the Galapagos Islands had a radius, measured from the centre of the disc to the tip of the arms, of 41.5 centimetres (16.3 in). Its other dimensions were a disc radius of 4.5 centimetres (1.8 in), a maximum arm width of 6 centimetres (2.4 in) and a longest spine of 1.5 centimetres (0.59 in). [2] By comparison, a specimen of the ten-armed Luidia magnifica from Hawaii had a radius of 38 centimetres (15 in) and the nine-armed Luidia savignyi at 37 centimetres (15 in) was the largest known starfish at the time at which it was measured. [2] The site at Tagus Cove is species rich because of the upwelling of the nutrient-laden, cool water Equatorial Undercurrent nearby, providing an optimum environment for growth which may encourage gigantism. [2]

Distribution and habitat

The holotype was collected off the coast of Colombia by researchers in the vessel R. V. Albatross in 1888 at a depth of 66 metres (217 ft). This specimen was described by A. H. Clark in 1917 and for a long time was the only known example of the species. Other specimens were later recorded during the Cortez 1, 2 and 3 cruises undertaken to research Asterozoa in these waters in 1982 and 1985. [4]

In 1977, following reports of a similar starfish in the Galapagos Islands, several specimens were observed at night on the seabed of Tagus Cove, Isabela Island, at depths of 9 metres (30 ft) to 18 metres (59 ft). During the day, the starfish bury themselves under about 10 centimetres (3.9 in) of sand, the only clue to their presence being a depression in the sand surface. In that location, these starfish were quite common in 1977, there being about one individual per 10 square metres (yards) of seabed. [2]

More recently, the El Nino event of 1982–3 was particularly severe and afterwards, Luidia superba was no longer to be found in its previous location in Tagus Cove. Its fate in the Galapagos Islands remains unclear. [5]

Biology

The stomachs of the three specimens taken from Tagus Cove were examined to determine their diet. [2] Unfortunately they were empty except for a few sea urchin spines, but like other members of its genus, Luidia superba is likely to be an opportunistic predator of large benthic fauna and a scavenger. Related species feed mainly on bivalve molluscs, brittle stars and sea urchins. [6]

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Common starfish</span> Species of starfish

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<i>Oreaster reticulatus</i> Species of starfish

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<i>Luidia</i> Genus of echinoderms

Luidia is a genus of starfish in the family Luidiidae in which it is the only genus. Species of the family have a cosmopolitan distribution.

<i>Luidia ciliaris</i> Species of starfish

Luidia ciliaris, the seven-armed sea star, is a species of sea star (starfish) in the family Luidiidae. It is found in the eastern Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea.

<i>Luidia clathrata</i> Species of starfish

Luidia clathrata is a tropical species of starfish in the family Luidiidae. It is variously known as the slender-armed starfish, the gray sea star, or the lined sea star. It is found in the western Atlantic Ocean.

<i>Luidia magnifica</i> Species of starfish

Luidia magnifica, the magnificent star, is a species of starfish in the family Luidiidae. It is found in the Pacific Ocean.

<i>Archaster typicus</i> Species of starfish

Archaster typicus is a species of starfish in the family Archasteridae. It is commonly known as the sand star or the sand sifting star but these names are also applied to starfish in the genus Astropecten. It is found in shallow waters in the Indo-Pacific region.

<i>Evasterias troschelii</i> Species of starfish

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<i>Luidia senegalensis</i> Species of starfish

Luidia senegalensis, the nine-armed sea star, is a tropical species of starfish in the family Luidiidae found in the western Atlantic Ocean.

<i>Luidia foliolata</i> Species of starfish

Luidia foliolata, the sand star, is a species of starfish in the family Luidiidae found in the northeastern Pacific Ocean on sandy and muddy seabeds at depths to about 600 m (2,000 ft).

<i>Ophiura albida</i> Species of brittle star

Ophiura albida is a species of brittle star in the order Ophiurida. It is typically found on the seabed in the north eastern Atlantic Ocean and in the Mediterranean Sea and is sometimes known as the serpent's table brittle star.

<i>Luidia quinaria</i> Species of starfish

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<i>Asterina gibbosa</i> Species of starfish

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<i>Luidia maculata</i> Species of starfish

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<i>Luidia magellanica</i> Species of starfish

Luidia magellanica is a species of starfish in the family Luidiidae. It is found in the southeastern Pacific Ocean on the coast of South America.

<i>Meyenaster</i> Genus of starfishes

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Asterias versicolor is a species of starfish native to the southern coasts of Japan southwards to the South China Sea.

<i>Luidia savignyi</i> Species of starfish

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References

  1. ↑ Mah, Christopher (2010). Mah CL (ed.). "Luidia superba A. H. Clark, 1917". World Asteroidea database. World Register of Marine Species . Retrieved 2012-01-14.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Downey, Maureen E.; Gerard M. Wellington (1977). "Rediscovery of the giant sea star Luidia superba A. H. Clark in the Galapagos Islands". Bulletin of Marine Science. 28 (2): 375–376.
  3. ↑ Family Luidiidae Marine Species Identification Portal. Retrieved 2012-01-14.
  4. 1 2 Caso Muñoz, María Elena (1994). "Estudio morfológico, taxónomico, ecológico y distribución geográfica de los asteroideos colectados durante las campañas oceanográficas Cortés 1, 2, 3". Publicaciones especiales – Instituto de Ciencias del Mar y Limnología. 12. UNAM: 17–111.
  5. ↑ Gillespie, Rosemary G.; D. A. Clague (2009). Encyclopedia of Islands: Galapagos Island Biology. University of California Press. p. 165. ISBN   9780520256491.
  6. ↑ Chiu, S. T.; V. W. W. Lam; Paul K. S. Shin (1990). "Further observations on the feeding biology of Luidia spp. in Hong Kong". The Marine Flora and Fauna of Hong Kong and Southern China II: Taxonomy and ecology. Hong Kong University Press. pp. 907–933. ISBN   9789622092532.
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