The dead sea lion and its compatriots swimming in the background are most likely California sea lions (Zalophus californianus), but they could also be Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus), based on the two species' geographical ranges.

The bat stars play a key role in recycling the sea lion into energy and nutrients, returning its remains to the marine food web.

It is unclear how the sea lion in the image died.

However, California sea lion populations are actually sharply increasing in size and are listed as "least concern" on the International Union for Conservation Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species (opens in new tab).

The starfish typically have five arms but can have as many as nine, and the animals grow to be up to 8 inches (20 centimeters) across, according to Monterey Bay Aquarium (opens in new tab).

When bat stars find food they push out one of their two stomachs through their mouths and release digestive enzymes to break down their meal before ingesting it, according to Monterey Bay Aquarium.

These starfish also have tiny, symbiotic worms that live in the grooves on the underside of the stars' bodies and feed on scraps left behind by their hosts.

A single bat star can support up to 20 of these worms, so there may be more than 100 worms in the new image that are busily digesting bits of sea lion.

As scavengers, the bat stars and their hitchhiking worms play an important role in this ocean ecosystem by recycling nutrients and energy from the top of the food chain back to the bottom. .

Bat stars are one of the species known to be at risk from this disease, according to Monterey Bay Aquarium

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