1. Brittle Stars or Serpent Stars….
Class: Ophiuroidea
Brittle Stars or Serpent Stars….

2. General Information
The most abundant echinoderms (about known species worldwide)
Nocturnal Animals

3. Skeleton
Brittle stars have long flexible arms that attach to a central disk
The central disk is usually less than 3 cm in diameter, but the arms can be up to 10 cm long
Two types of ossicles
Skeletal Ossicles
These form a series of scaly plates along the arms
Arm Ossicles
These are long, cylindrical plates that run through the center of each arm; they look like a row of vertebrae
The ossicles are attached by muscles that contract and produce a snake-like motion

4. Protection Brittle stars have a pretty cool way to protect themselves
When a predator captures a brittle star it breaks off the arm
The arm wriggles and the brittle star escapes
The lost arm quickly regenerates

5. Feeding & Digestion Eat detritus on the floor
Some curl their arms up to catch food suspended in the water
The tube feet move food to the mouth where it is then transported to the stomach
They have no anus, so they eject indigestible particles through their mouths