A starfish has no face comparable to ours. This does not prevent him from having eyes. In many known species, a compound eye is found at the end of each arm: the arrangement of the gaze follows a completely different architecture than that of our head.
In 2014, Anders Garm and Dan-Eric Nilsson studied Linckia laevigata, a star associated with coral reefs. Its eyes provide a low-resolution image, slow and without color vision. Nevertheless, the experiments show their usefulness: the intact-eyed individuals regain their reef after displacement in the tested conditions.
Five arms can mean five small points of view. We should not imagine them as five human cameras: recognizing the large mass of a habitat can be enough to guide an animal. An imperfect image for our uses remains valuable information for those who must find their way back.
What we know
Experience on Linckia laevigata; number of eyes tied to the arms, not five eyes imposed on all starfish.
To go to the source
References consulted on September 21, 2026. Linked pages may be in another language.
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