How do sea stars eat?

Sea stars, also known as starfish, have a unique way of feeding. They use their tube feet to grab onto their prey, which can range from mussels and clams to small fish, and then pry open the prey's shell using their strong arms. Once the shell is open, the sea star everts its stomach out of its body and into the shell, where it digests the prey externally before sucking up the liquefied remains.

Sea stars are able to eat prey much larger than their own mouths because of their ability to evert their stomachs outside of their bodies. This adaptation allows them to consume prey that would otherwise be too big to fit in their small mouths.

Interestingly, some sea star species are also filter feeders, meaning they use their tube feet to capture plankton and other small organisms from the water column.