brittle star

American  

Or brittlestar

noun

1. any echinoderm of the class Ophiuroidea, having the body composed of a central, rounded disk from which radiate long, slender, fragile arms.

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brittle-star British  

noun

1. any echinoderm of the class Ophiuroidea , occurring on the sea bottom and having five long slender arms radiating from a small central disc See also basket-star

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Etymology

Origin of brittle star

First recorded in 1835–45

Example Sentences

In a paper published Wednesday in The Proceedings of the Royal Society B, a team of scientists describe the fossil of a brittle star that was petrified while regenerating three of its six limbs.

From New York Times • May 14, 2024

The brittle star fossil was discovered in the Nusplingen limestone deposit in southern Germany.

From New York Times • May 14, 2024

“You have this brittle star with every single piece in its original place, just as if it washed up on the beach a day ago,” Dr. Thuy said.

From New York Times • May 14, 2024

Clockwise from top left: an anemone, a brittle star, Acanthogorgiidae coral and a pencil urchin.Credit:

From Nature • Jul. 23, 2019

It has been asserted that no one has ever captured by hand a brittle star perfect in all its members.

From Confessions of a Beachcomber by Banfield, E. J. (Edmund James)