About Patiria miniata (Brandt, 1835)
Patiria miniata, commonly known as the bat star, sea bat, webbed star, or broad-disk star, is a species of sea star (also called a starfish) that belongs to the family Asterinidae. This species typically has five arms, and its central body disk is much wider than the stubby arms are long. While five arms is the most common number, individual bat stars sometimes have as many as nine arms. Bat stars display a wide range of colors, including green, purple, red, orange, yellow, and brown, and their coloration can be either mottled or solid. The species gets its common name bat star from the webbing between its arms, which is said to look like a bat's wings. Bat stars are most commonly found from the intertidal zone down to a depth of 300 metres (980 ft). Their geographic range extends along the Pacific Ocean from Sitka, Alaska to Baja California. They are most abundant along the Central Coast of California, where they usually live in kelp forests because these habitats provide a consistent food source. Bat stars reproduce via spawning. Males release sperm and females release eggs through pores located at the base of their arms. Sperm and eggs fuse in the open ocean, and the resulting fertilized eggs are carried away by ocean currents.
