Common starfish

Asterias rubens
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Echinodermata
Class:	Asteroidea
Order:	Forcipulatida
Family:	Asteriidae
Genus:	Asterias
Species:	A. rubens
Binomial name
Asterias rubens Linnaeus, 1758[1]
Synonyms[2]
Asteracanthion distichum Brandt, 1851 Asteracanthion rubens Müller & Troschel, 1842 Asteracanthion violaceus Müller & Troschel, 1842 Asterias attenuata Bell, 1891 Asterias clathrata Pennant, 1777 Asterias disticha Sladen, 1889 Asterias fabricii Perrier, 1875 Asterias gigantea Bell, 1891 Asterias glacialis Pennant, 1777 Asterias holsatica Retzius, 1805 Asterias minuta Linnaeus, 1761 Asterias murrayi Bell, 1891 Asterias pallida Perrier, 1875 Asterias spinosa Say, 1825 Asterias stimpsoni Verrill, 1866 Asterias violacea O.F. Mueller, 1788 Asterias vulgaris Verrill, 1866 Stellonia rubens Nardo, 1834 Uraster rubens Forbes, 1841 Uraster violaceus Forbes, 1841

The common starfish, common sea star or sugar starfish (Asterias rubens) is the most common and familiar starfish in the north-east Atlantic. Belonging to the family Asteriidae, it has five arms and usually grows to between 10–30 cm across, although larger specimens (up to 52 cm across) are known. The common starfish is usually orange or brownish in color, and sometimes violet; specimens found in deeper waters are pale. The common starfish is found on rocky and gravelly substrates where it feeds on mollusks and other benthic invertebrates.