Captive movement rates of the Pacific crown-of-thorns starfish, Acanthaster solaris

This data respresents movement rates of crown-of-thorns starfish in captivity. To quantify mean and maximum rates of movement, individual A. solaris were placed into a large (5-m diameter) round tank. Three different substrate types were tested: i) a 5-cm thick layer of coarse (sediment-free) sand, which was collected from intertidal areas in inter-reefal back reef habitat; ii) a continuous layer of paving tiles which were coated in calcareous algae following extended deployment (up to 6 months) in reef environments before being air dried (reflective of consolidated carbonate pavement); and iii) coral rubble, mostly comprising an assortment of dead and air dried coral fragments (up to 10 x 10 x 5 cm) from experiments conducted at Lizard Island Research Station. All starfish were filmed from above and movement rates (cm/ second) were determined for all possible 15-second intervals for each starfish.
The full methodology is available in the Open Access publication from the Related Publications link below.