Eight-Legged Starfish
“A starfish thought to be the first in the world with eight legs has been found off the British coast, it emerged today. The bizarre creature, which has three more limbs than normal, was discovered inside a Cornish fisherman’s crab pot. Sea life experts at the Blue Reef Aquarium in Newquay – where it is on display – believe it may be two spiny starfishes in the form of conjoined twins. Curator Matt Slater explained: ‘Starfish have the ability to re-grow lost limbs and the general consensus is that starfish with extra legs are caused by some kind of accidental genetic mutation. ‘However with this particular starfish it has three extra legs and it also has two special openings – known as madreporites – through which water is pumped into their fluid filled skeleton. ‘An individual starfish would normally only have one of these.” w/ photos
