This Sea Creature Regrows Entire Limbs, And Some Grow A Whole New Body

Lose an arm, grow it back. In some cases, the arm grows the animal back.

Losing a limb is catastrophic for most animals. For a starfish, it is more of an inconvenience. These slow-moving stars of the seafloor treat regrowing body parts as a routine part of life.

If a predator grabs a starfish and tears off an arm, the starfish can often regenerate the lost limb over time. Some species can even shed an arm on purpose to escape danger, then rebuild it later.

Here is the truly wild part. In certain species, a detached arm containing part of the central disc can regrow into an entirely new starfish. One animal, torn apart, can become two.

This regenerative power has long fascinated scientists studying how tissue rebuilds. It is a quiet superpower hiding in tide pools and reefs, an animal that turns injury into a fresh start, one limb at a time.