Northern Pacific Seastar

Responsible fishing tips

​An introduced pest not a target species, these seastars are often observed by fishers. There are sometimes caught in pots or nets or accidentally on rod and line in the Derwent estuary. Voracious predators of native bivalves, they will eat any animal matter available to them including discarded bait and fish waste. The Northern Pacific seastar is a declared noxious species and it is illegal to possess them on state waters. It is important to know how to distinguish this pest species from native species before you remove any seastars from the water. See the native eleven armed and granular seastars​ pages for more information.