Flatbottom Sea Star, Asterias amurensis
![[Flatbottom Sea
Star, Asterias amurensis, staraster.jpg=60KB]](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080921164504im_/http://www.afsc.noaa.gov/kodiak/images/photo/staraster.jpg)
The flatbottom sea star, Asterias amurensis, in Alaska,
is very abundant north and occurs locally south of the Alaska Peninsula;
and it ranges from British Columbia, Canada (below 200m) to Japan (Lambert
1945).
Its diameter is to 16 inches. Juvenile red king crab shelter themselves in
between the arms of A. amurensis and E. troschelii, presumably for
protection against predators or to feed upon food associated with these
commensal hosts (Powell and Nickerson, 1965; Dew, 1990).
Scientific name: Greek asterias (starred).
Digital photo by Jan Haaga. References (a complete list) in the text include:
Kessler (1985) or Barr (1983).
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