An Antarctic starfish (Odontaster validus) climbs over an Antarctic scallop (Adamisium colbecki).
An Antarctic starfish (Odontaster validus) climbs over an Antarctic scallop (Adamisium colbecki) in the coastal Ross Sea. Antarctic starfish are omnivores with a wide range of potential prey and an ability to filter feed. Marine food webs often have a high degree of omnivory, with animals tending to feed broadly across available food types, both up and down the food chain. As a result, species such as starfish do not appear to be restricted to fixed trophic positions in marine food webs. In marine ecosystems in Antarctica, sea ice conditions influence food web dynamics by affecting the primary food sources that are available. This photograph originally appeared on the cover of Ecology (88:11) in November of 2007.
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| Primary or BEN resource type | |
|---|---|
| Url | http://www.esajournals.org/doi/abs/10.1890/06-1396.1 |
| Format | |
| Temporal and geographic description | Coastal Ros Sea, Antarctica. |
| Core Concepts | |
| Drought & Water-Ecosystem Services Collection | Off |
| Conservation Targets Under Global Change Collection | Off |
| Big Data Collection | Off |
| Editor's Choice | No |
| Audience | |
| Pedagogical Use Description | This photograph can be used to illustrate starfish, sea scallops, or as an example of an Antarctic marine species. |
| Keywords | predation, food web, dynamics, ice, primary production, marine, aquatic, Antarctica |
| Key taxa | Antarctic starfish, Odontaster validus, Antarctic scallop, Adamisium colbecki |
| Life science discipline (subject) | |
| Primary Author Controlled Name | |
| Primary Author Affiliation | Antarctica New Zealand |
| Primary Author email | n/a |
| Rights | Copyright 2007 by the Ecological Society of America. |
| Date Of Record Submission | 2008-04-08 |
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