Species · GBIF taxon 2273740
Giant Sea Star
Pisaster giganteusAlso known as Giant Spined Star, Knobby Sea Star
Giant sea stars are striking marine predators adorned with thick, blunt, blue-ringed spines that stand out against their colorful arms. They inhabit low-intertidal and subtidal rocky reefs, using hundreds of powerful tube feet to cling to wave-swept rocks and pry open stubborn bivalves. These slow-moving echinoderms play a vital role in structuring coastal tide pool communities by keeping dominant prey populations in check.
MarineInvertebratePredatory
Licensed referenceWikimedia / CC BY-SA · CC BY-SA
- diet
- Carnivorous (mollusks, barnacles, and snails)
- family
- Asteriidae
- threats
- Sea star wasting disease, ocean warming, and coastal pollution
- life Span
- Up to 20 years
NE
Safe to observe at a normal distance.
Highly vulnerable to sea star wasting disease, which has caused massive population crashes along the Pacific coast.
Never touch or move individuals, and report any signs of wasting disease to local marine researchers.- Look but do not touch: Avoid prying them off rocks, as this can easily tear their delicate tube feet.
- Check the spines: Look closely at the bright blue rings surrounding each white spine to confirm the identification.
- Watch the tide: Search for them during extreme low tides in deep rocky crevices and kelp holdfasts.