Species group · Crinoids

Sea Lilies

WAnimals has 2 species of sea lily, spread across 2 families (Antedonidae, Isocrinidae).

2 species
2 families
32 countries
50 parks
Length
5 cm – 50 cm

Ranges calculated from the entries that record the figure, not from all 2.

All 2 species of sea lilies on WAnimals

Each one has its own full entry. This group does not replace them: it brings them together.

Conservation status

2 Not Evaluated

No species documented in this group is genuinely at risk according to the IUCN, with the data available today.

See the global conservation status

Where they live

Recorded in 32 countries. The ones with the most species in the group:

Where to see them

Did you know…

  • It is an echinoderm, a relative of the sea stars and urchins, though its flower-like appearance gives nothing away.

    From Rosy Feather-star

  • It swims by beating its arms alternately in a surprisingly graceful motion, something no other echinoderm does.

    From Rosy Feather-star

  • If a predator tears off an arm it regrows it completely, and it can shed arms deliberately to escape.

    From Rosy Feather-star

  • Stalked crinoids dominated the seabed through the Palaeozoic and formed veritable underwater forests whose remains make up entire beds of limestone; today they survive in deep water.

    From Japanese Sea Lily

  • Despite the stalk, it is not fixed for life: it can detach and crawl slowly across the bottom to a better spot, something only filmed in recent decades.

    From Japanese Sea Lily

  • Its stalk is made of stacked discs that come apart when it dies and turn up as fossils shaped like coins or screws.

    From Japanese Sea Lily

Ecosystems

See every species group · Explore the species one by one