Asterias amurensis, also known as the Northern Pacific seastar, is a seastar native to the coasts of northern China, North Korea, South Korea, Russia and Japan. Distribution of this species into other countries has increased. Based on the distribution of northern Pacific seastar populations in shipping ports and routes, the most likely mechanism of introduction is the transport of free-swimming larvae in ballast water for ships. The ships suck in the ballast water containing seastar larvae, in a port such as one in Japan, and let it out in a port such as one in Tasmania, the larvae come out with the water, and metamorphose into juvenile sea stars.
It has become an invasive species in Australia and is on the Invasive Species Specialist Group list of the world's 100 worst invasive species.
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