Astroboa nuda

Astroboa nuda is a type of basket star from Gorgonocephalidae family. Its large arms (up to 1.0 metre (3.3 ft) armspread) are highly branched. It inhabits reef slopes exposed to current in diverse places such as the Red Sea and New Caledonia. During the day it coils into a tight ball. At night it spreads arms to form a basket to feed on plankton. They are part of the class Ophiuroidea, which is the largest class of echinoderms. The name Ophiuroidea comes from the roots, ophis, meaning snake and oura, which means tail, referring to the thin, spiraling shape of the basket stars’ arms.