The StiirfisJi and Its Kindred 



51 



colored. Traveling in droves, as starfishes sometimes 

 do, they range from low-water mark to depths of six 

 hundred fathoms or inore. 



The brittle stars are so called because of their ex- 

 treme tendency to break off their limbs when captured. 

 They are much less abundant than the common star- 

 fishes, and their secretiveness makes them hard to find. 



ASTERIAS; THE COMMON STARFISH. THIS INDIVIDUAL IS GROWING A NEW ARM IN 



THE PLACE OF ONE THAT WAS LOST. 



Although some specimens live near the shore, they are 

 for the most part inhabitants of deep water. Their 

 very slender rays and their active wriggling move- 

 ments give them the superficial appearance of a spider. 

 Their outstanding difference from the starfish, how- 

 ever, is in having their limbs more or less loosely at- 

 tached to the central disk, or body. In the starfish 

 the rays are solid extensions of the disk. 



Sea urchins, although differing in shape, are alike in 



