A Wonderleaf question
How does a starfish eat?
a real page from the book
A starfish eats by prying open shellfish with its many tube feet, then sending its stomach outside its body through its mouth. The stomach slips into the shell, releases digestive juices, and turns the soft animal into food the starfish can draw back in.
That odd method lets a starfish eat prey that would not fit through its mouth. A clam only has to open a hair’s width before the stomach can enter, so the starfish wins by steady pulling and patience, not biting. No teeth needed.
Wonder words
- stomach
- digest
- clam
- suction
Try it out
At dinner, use two hands as a closed clam shell and have a child test how patient, steady pulling changes the gap.
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