Habitat: Rocky reef under rocks or in sponge crevices
Depth: Subtidal to 10+ metres
Larger than the closely-related Ophiothrix caespitosa, this brittle star shares the long glassy spines and the spinelets on its disc. It has blue-purple banded arms, and ranges in overall colour from yellow to pinkish red. It does not have an even covering of spinelets on the disc, and instead these radiate out from the centre in bands between each of the five arms. The long glassy spines distinguish this genus, and this particular species can be differentiated from O. caespitosa by the non-uniform coverage of spinelets, its larger size, and the flattened, clubbed ends of its arm spines. With experience, the pattern can also be used to ID this species.
