feather star
comatulid

Even the free-swimming feather stars sometimes go through this stage, with the adult eventually breaking away from the stalk.

The variable bushy feather star is found in shallow waters in the western Pacific.

After metamorphosis the stalk remains intact at first but later breaks and the juvenile feather star can move around independently.

Some feather stars and sea cucumbers can swim.

Such feather stars are very numerous in some reef habitats today.

The feather stars have been much more successful.

The free-living feather stars first appear in the Upper Triassic.

Usually, feather stars creep about by using projections at the bottom of the crown, called cirri.

As well as crawling around, this feather star can swim short distances by flapping its arms.

The worm larvae are caught by the tube feet of the feather star and treated like food particles.