Ophiuroidea | 
Ophiurida | 
Ophiuridae
			
			
			
				Environment: milieu / climate zone / depth range / distribution range				
				
					Ecology				
				
			
			
				Benthic.  Subtropical			
			
			
				
			
			
			
				Northwest Pacific:  China.
			
			
			
			
			
				Length at first maturity / Size / Weight / Age
			
			
				Maturity: Lm ?  range ? - ? cm			
			
			
						
			
			
			
			
				
									
			
			
			
			
			
				Life cycle and mating behavior				
					Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae				
			
			
				
					Members of the class Ophiuroidea are mostly gonochoric, others are protandric.  Fertilization is external.  Brooding is common, bursae is used as brood chambers where the embryos develop into juveniles and later crawl out from the bursal slits.  Life cycle:  Embryos hatch into free-swimming planktotrophic larvae and later metamorphose into tiny brittle stars which sink down the bottom where they grow into adult form.				
			
			
			
			
			
				Mito, T. and K. Endo 2000 PCR survey of Hox genes in the srinoid and ophiuroid: evidence for anterior conservation and posterior expansion in the echinoderm hox gene cluster. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 14(3):375-388. (Ref. 77943)
			
			
			
			
			
			
			
					
						IUCN Red List Status    
						 (Ref. 130435: Version 2025-1)
					
					
					
				
			
			
			
			
				CITES status   (Ref. 108899)
			
			
				
					Not Evaluated				
			
			
			
			
			
			
				
					Not Evaluated				
			
			
			
			
			
				Threat to humans  
			
			
				
									
			
			
			
			
			
			
			
			
				Human uses  
			
			
							
			
			
				 | FishSource | 			
			
			
			
			
			
Tools
			
			
			
			
				
					More information				
				
					 Trophic EcologyFood items (preys)Diet compositionFood consumptionPredators   Population dynamicsGrowth
Max. ages / sizes
Length-weight rel.
Length-length rel.
Length-frequencies
Mass conversion
Abundance
  Life cycleReproductionMaturityFecunditySpawningEggsEgg developmentLarvae   PhysiologyOxygen consumption
  Human RelatedStamps, coins, misc.
  
			 
			
			
			
				Internet sources
			
			
			
			
			
				Estimates based on models