Brisingida


The Brisingids are deep-sea-dwelling starfish in the order Brisingida.

Description

These starfish have between 6 and 16 long, attenuated arms which they use for suspension feeding. Other characteristics include a single series of marginals, a fused ring of disc plates, the lack of actinal plates, a spool-like ambulacral column, reduced abactinal plates, and crossed pedicellariae. They are 40 times the size of disk radius and have 7–20 flexible spiny arms.

Distribution

Brisingida occur in a number of deep-sea locations, particularly in the Caribbean and New Zealand.
Image:Orange brisingid- noaa expl0961.jpg|thumb|right|250px|An orange brisingid on black coral at 1,950 m in California, Davidson Seamount This type of species are found of varying size especially in the eastern Pacific Ocean at a depth of 1,820–2,418 m.

Taxonomy

The Brisingida contain two families, with 18 genera:
  • Family Brisingidae, G.O. Sars, 1875
  • *Genus Astrolirus, Fisher, 1917 —
  • *Genus Astrostephane, Fisher, 1917 —
  • *Genus Brisinga Asbjørnsen, 1856 —
  • *Genus Brisingaster Loriol, 1883 —
  • *Genus Brisingella Fisher, 1917 —
  • *Genus Brisingenes Fisher, 1917 —
  • *Genus Hymenodiscus Perrier, 1884 —
  • *Genus Midgardia Downey, 1972 —
  • *Genus Novodinia Dartnall, Pawson, Pope & B.J. Smith, 1969 —
  • *Genus Odinella Fisher, 1940 —
  • *Genus Stegnobrisinga Fisher, 1916 —
  • Family Freyellidae, Downey, 1986
  • *Genus Astrocles Fisher, 1917 —
  • *Genus Belgicella Ludwig, 1903 —
  • *Genus Colpaster Sladen, 1889 —
  • *Genus Freyastera Downey, 1986 —
  • *Genus Freyella Perrier, 1885 —
  • *Genus Freyellaster Fisher 1918 —