It digs itself into the soft sediment of the seabed and raises its arms into the water above to suspension feed on plankton.

It was first described by the British naturalist Edward Forbes in 1843, and was named for the Italian zoologist Stefano Delle Chiaje (1794–1860).

Amphiura chiajei has a central disc and five slender arms and is pinkish or greyish brown.

The gonads grow in size over the winter and spring and broadcast spawning takes place in late summer and early autumn.

Then in 1965 a large number of young individuals joined the population, demonstrating that episodic recruitment is a feature of this brittle star.