(Asterina) Star Wars

[gkprevite]

Over the years I’ve have a few different systems and asterina stars have not been an uncommon sight. Never had issues with them. I started seeing them pop up in my recent Fiji 32 ext and thought great to see the system supporting all types of life. Until just before. I’ve heard stories but never saw it myself. I watched as one of them crawled onto a zoa frag, a smaller polyp variety, after a minute I looked again and the star positioned itself on top of 3 isolated polyps and ate them. Gone! This act of aggression will not go unpunished, I’m declaring war!
What are your experiences with Asterina stars good, bad, ugly?

 

[skiergd011013]

I have seen them crawl over a coralline spot on glass, and leave behind dead white coralline when they move. Manual removal works great for these if you dont have plague numbers.

 

[ironmnki]

Today I must have spent two hours and took out over 45 asterinas from my tank I had only seen a few until I dropped a harlequin shrimp in my tank and they started coming out of the woodwork . Jumping on every coral in my tank , leathers, Zoa, alveo , even whips .. so I started to pull out manually any I saw and lost count at 45 it’s as though the sense the harlequin and de used to wage war . Meanwhile the harlequin is doing no work and hanging out on a rock but I just got him today .


What else can I do ?

 

[gkprevite]

Today I must have spent two hours and took out over 45 asterinas from my tank I had only seen a few until I dropped a harlequin shrimp in my tank and they started coming out of the woodwork . Jumping on every coral in my tank , leathers, Zoa, alveo , even whips .. so I started to pull out manually any I saw and lost count at 45 it’s as though the sense the harlequin and de used to wage war . Meanwhile the harlequin is doing no work and hanging out on a rock but I just got him today .


What else can I do ?

That’s about as much as you can do. It’s funny that you mentioned aleveo, when I had a lot of asterinas mine died and I found it strange. It’s the only coral I’ve lost in the tank in almost 2 years. I thought it was related to the stars, then I thought it was just me coping.