The Leather Star (Dermasterias imbricata) can grow to 8" in diameter. It has smooth, slippery, leathery skin on its upper suface, hence its name. If you find a leather star NOT attached to rocks and can pick it up without damaging its' tube feet, turn the star over and smell it...there will be the faint whiff of garlic.
Leather stars, as all sea stars, are carnivorous, and feed on sea anemones, sea urchins and sea cucumbers. Judging by the photo below, the leather star may be attempting a lunch of Giant Green Anemones...though in this case, his eyes may be bigger than his stomach! A leather star will put its arm on top of a sea anemone to determine how large it is. If the anemone is too large, the leather star will move on to another, smaller anemone.
The Leather Star's tube feet are clearly visible in the photo below (the white spikes projecting from the cream-colored underside of the star's arm), as well as its white eye-spots at the end of each arm. All Sea stars have these "eyes", and while they can't see clearly, they are able to distinguish between light and dark.
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