A diamondlike structure gives some starfish skeletons their strength
A microscale pattern compensates for the weakness of the calcite mineral
![three starfish on the ocean floor](https://i0.wp.com/www.sciencenews.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/021022_cw_starfish-strength_feat.jpg?fit=1030%2C580&ssl=1)
Beneath the skin of knobby starfish is a skeleton made of brittle, stonelike growths that derive strength from an unexpected internal structure.
Ria Tan/Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0)