A sea star is earning plenty of attention online for what appears to be a little junk in the trunk.
The photo, posted Sunday on Twitter, shows the five-armed aquatic creature climbing up a rock wall at a California aquarium, and it appears to have quite the buttocks – so much so, that more than 172,000 users have retweeted the post.
The sea star quickly skyrocketed to internet stardom, with fans describing it as “thicc” and comparing it to Patrick, a sea star from the cartoon series “Spongebob Squarepants.”
Of course, the sea star doesn’t actually have a buttocks. Marine experts say the eye-catching formation is actually how its arms appear in a relaxed position.
Mackenzie Neale, a marine biologist and assistant curator at the Vancouver Aquarium, told CTVNews.ca that the sea star appears “a little saggy on the bottom” likely because of the way it is hanging.
“Gravity is likely causing some of its internal organs and water to bulge, making it look like it’s got a butt. There doesn’t appear to be anything else abnormal about its body condition (such as regeneration of an arm, or disease) so I think it just happens to be a great moment in its life,” Neale said in an email.
But there’s another possibility, too, Neale said.
“A sea star’s gonads are in its arms so maybe it’s getting ready to spawn, so it could be a little bit fuller on that side.”
The user who tweeted the picture said she was surprised by all the attention and thought only a few people might see it. She also acknowledged that sea stars don’t have buttocks.
