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Orange Bat Star

The bat star (Patiria miniata) is a species of starfish found in the eastern Pacific Ocean from Alaska to Baja California. It gets its common name from the webbing between its arms, which resembles the wings of a bat. Known also as the sea bat, webbed star, and broad-disk star, this species is found in many of colors including green, purple, red, orange, yellow and brown. It usually has five arms, but can sometimes have as many as nine. It grows as large as 8 inches (20 cm) in diameter and feeds on algae, tunicates, and organic films on rocks.