【Naming】

Hai Yan (Sea Swallow/Starfish)

 【Source】

Ben Cao Gang Mu (Compendium of Materia Medica)

 【Common Usage Level】

E

 【Origin】

The whole body of the starfish animal Potiria pectinifera of the Asteriidae family.

 【Characteristics】

Starfish, the body is flat, in the shape of a pentagonal star; the central part is called the body disc. The dorsal part of the body disc is called the aboral surface, which has imbricated arranged bone plates. The external color of the aboral surface varies greatly, usually arranged in a mixture of dark blue and vermilion. The ventral surface facing downwards is called the oral surface, which is orange-yellow in color and has a mouth in the center. Around the body disc, there are 5 short arms arranged radially, and sometimes 4-9 arms can also be seen. The center of each arm is slightly raised like a ridge, and the edges are sharp; the ventral surface of the arm has an open ambulacral groove, and there are 2 rows of tube feet in the groove, and the tube feet have suckers.

 【Identification】

Starfish, produced in the East Sea. About one inch in size, shaped flat and round. The back is bluish-black, and the underside is white and brittle, similar to cuttlebone, with patterns like mushrooms. The mouth is on the underside. It eats fine sand, and there are five regular hooks near the mouth, which are its feet.

Attached: Sea Moth
Source: The whole body of the sea moth fish Pegasus laternarius (cuvier) of the Pegasidae family.
Medicinal Material Characteristics: The trunk is disc-shaped, and the body width is greater than the body length. The snout is protruding, the female snout is shorter and smaller, triangular, and the tip only has fine serrations on both sides. The male snout is larger and short-stalked. There are 4-6 raised bones on both sides and the back and abdomen, with fine serrations on the back. The eyes are large and located on the sides of the body. There is one nostril on each side, the mouth is small, and there are no teeth. The tail is short, rhomboid, and has 11 segments. The body is scaleless and completely covered with bone plates, so it cannot move. The dorsal fin and the anal fin are completely opposite each other. The pectoral fin is wing-shaped, and the fin rays are spine-like, with the 5th fin ray being thick, hard, and large. Both the dorsal fin and the caudal fin have green-brown spots of varying sizes. It has a fishy smell and a slightly salty taste.

 【Chapter】

Vertebrate Category