Starfish disintegrate after death. Only the ossicles and spines of the animal are likely to be preserved, making remains hard to locate. With their appealing symmetrical shape, starfish have played a part in literature, legend, design and popular culture. They are sometimes collected as curios, used in design or as logos, and in some cultures, despite possible toxicity, they are eaten. Most starfish have five arms that radiate from a central disc, but the number varies with the group. Some species have six or seven arms and others have 10–15 arms. The Antarctic "Labidiaster annulatus" can have over fifty. Having descended
Stichaster striatus these were sessile organisms. It was not found to engage in cannibalism of its own species or to feed on other species of starfish. Many individuals were found to have missing or regenerating arms. This is likely the result of attacks by the dominant predatory starfish in the region "Meyenaster gelatinosus" and "Luidia magellanica". Starfish with missing arms are likely to have a certain minimum size; this is because, if they are too small, they are entirely devoured by the predator which attacked them. Juvenile "S. striatus" are found among the holdfasts of the kelp "Lessonia nigrescens" or hiding in