Crinoid - Pentacrinus subangularis

Description

Crinoids are a type of echinoderm, a group of animals that includes starfish and sea urchins. Crinoids live only in seawater. Although uncommon today, they were very abundant in the geologic past. Crinoids have a stem that attaches to the seafloor and a crown-shaped body which bears feathery arms. The arms gather small food particles from the water and transfer them to a mouth at the top. The crinoid skeleton is composed of hundreds of tiny plates that usually fall apart when the animal dies.