is it true that star fish arm can grow?

[mansiz]

Is it true that if one of the star fish's arm is being cut of, it can grow up to be another starfish?

[ReefRaff]

I've heard the starfish will grow another arm. I'm not sure of the other.

[BillyZ]

if it loses an arm, the starfish will regrow its arm.

Starfish reproduce by splitting, whereby they voluntarily split one of their arms from their body and that arm will then grow into a new star. I don't believe if you cut the arm off a star it will regrow into a whole new star.


I could be wrong...

[kidafius]

BillyZ is absoluteley correct. A starfish can regenerate a new arm if one is severed. But the severed arm will not grow a new star. The starfish CAN voluntarily cast off an arm along with a segment of the disk, and that arm will regenerate a new star.

[echo7]

i think the arm could become a new star, but i haven't ever heard of someone succesfully propogating them in captivity.

[plkdb]

I saw a picture in national geographic a few years back, it was of a starfish with one huge arm, and a few little ones about 1/4 the size growing from the large one in the center.

[BillyZ]

that photo you saw was the result of it's voluntarily splitting, which is how the starfish reproduces. Simply cutting the arm off of a star will NOT get you two stars. This has to be done voluntarily by the starfish itself.