Hippasteria
Hippasteria is one of 70 genera of sea stars in the diverse family Goniasteridae.
Description and characteristics
These sea stars are regular, five-armed starfishes, with a large and flattened central disc.
Most of the species in this genus live in deep seas, where they seem to be predators of deep sea coral and cnidarians.
The species Hippasteria phrygiana may be one of the most widely distributed species : it is present in the 3 main oceanic basins.
According to the World Register of Marine Species, the genus Hippasteria is composed of the following twelve species:Hippasteria californica Fisher, 1905Hippasteria falklandica Fisher, 1940Hippasteria heathi Fisher, 1905Hippasteria imperialis Goto, 1914Hippasteria leiopelta Fisher, 1910Hippasteria lepidonotus Hippasteria magellanica Perrier, 1888Hippasteria mcknighti Mah, Neill, Eleaume & Foltz 2014Hippasteria muscipula Mah, Neill, Eleaume & Foltz 2014Hippasteria nozawai Goto, 1914Hippasteria phrygiana Hippasteria tiburoni Mah, Neill, Eleaume & Foltz 2014