Video

Sea star larvae

Transcript

DR MILES LAMARE

When these animals reproduce, they release a free-swimming stage – it’s a microscopic larval stage – and that is in the water column, moving around for weeks or months, depending on what species you’re dealing with. And that’s a way that the animal can basically colonise different areas. It releases the larvae, they get washed away, then they settle out and turn into little starfish and grow up.

Rights: University of Waikato
Published:17 September 2009