| Leptasterias | |
|---|---|
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| The whelk Nucella lima being attacked by Leptasterias hexactis | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Echinodermata |
| Class: | Asteroidea |
| Order: | Forcipulatida |
| Family: | Asteriidae |
| Genus: | Leptasterias Verrill, 1866 [1] |
| Species | |
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See text | |
Leptasterias is a genus of starfish in the family Asteriidae. Members of this genus are characterised by having six arms although five-armed specimens sometimes occur. L. muelleri is the type species. The taxonomy of the genus is confusing and Leptasterias hexactis seems to be a species complex. Some species brood their eggs.[2]
- ^ Mah, Christopher (2010). "Leptasterias Verrill, 1866". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 2012-02-03.
- ^ Lambert, Philip (2001). Sea stars of British Columbia, Southeast Alaska, and Puget Sound. UBC Press. pp. 117–126. ISBN 9780774808255.