Nature Field Guide
Banded Serpent Brittle Star
- Spanish name
- Ofiura de brazos anillados
- Scientific name
- Ophionereis annulata
What Do Pico & Tati Think?
Patterns help Tati remember a discovery. Pico sketches the bands he can see along a slender arm.
Species overview
About the Banded Serpent Brittle Star
Ophionereis annulata is a brittle star with a rounded central disc and slender banded arms. It lives on marine reef bottoms and feeds on detritus. By following small clues such as arm bands and the shape of the disc, observers can learn how similar-looking reef animals differ.
Identification
Key Features of the Banded Serpent Brittle Star
A small central disc
Long flexible arms
Darker bands along the arms
Habitat & range
Suitable underwater coastal habitat. Use a permitted guided snorkeling or viewing activity appropriate to your family; do not enter the sea just to find this animal.
Local observations
Documented in Guanacaste. Also recorded at Isla del Coco (Oceanic Pacific); the museum checklist uses Ophiocoma alexandri for Ophiocomella alexandri. Region tags represent documented locations, not an exhaustive range or a promise of occurrence at every beach. Additional regional assignments require locality evidence.
When to observe
Visibility depends on the site, conditions and the animal. Ask a local guide about an appropriate visit; no fixed encounter season is promised.
Conservation & care
Watch without touching, lifting, feeding or collecting. Keep fingers and equipment away from spines and other surface structures. Leave the animal submerged and its habitat undisturbed.
Observation activity
Draw a short section of an arm pattern from a reference photograph. Describe the pattern using words as well as colors.