Chocolate Chip Star?

[Jeffcb]

I have 2 Chocolate Chip Star Fish. I have had them over a year. No telling what they eat. They just crawl around and eat something.
Tried feeding them a couple of times. Not sure if they eat the food I have given them or not.

They crawl everywhere. Rocks , Glass and sand bed. This morning they were both on the glass.
I noticed one seem to have its innards out. Is something wrong with it or is it doing some thing, digesting maybe?

The other one looks normal.

 

[Dan_P]

I have 2 Chocolate Chip Star Fish. I have had them over a year. No telling what they eat. They just crawl around and eat something.
Tried feeding them a couple of times. Not sure if they eat the food I have given them or not.

They crawl everywhere. Rocks , Glass and sand bed. This morning they were both on the glass.
I noticed one seem to have its innards out. Is something wrong with it or is it doing some thing, digesting maybe?

The other one looks normal.

Sea stars push there stomachs out to feed.

Feed these sea stars by putting chunks of food under them or rubber banding a piece of food to a small rock. Small pieces of shrimp or a krill would be an example of a neat piece of food.

 

[((FORDTECH))]

I have 2 Chocolate Chip Star Fish. I have had them over a year. No telling what they eat. They just crawl around and eat something.
Tried feeding them a couple of times. Not sure if they eat the food I have given them or not.

They crawl everywhere. Rocks , Glass and sand bed. This morning they were both on the glass.
I noticed one seem to have its innards out. Is something wrong with it or is it doing some thing, digesting maybe?

The other one looks normal.

I believe chocolate chip starfish or not reef safe and eat Coral’s so you should look into that

 

[Jeffcb]

Sea stars push there stomachs out to feed.

Feed these sea stars by putting chunks of food under them or rubber banding a piece of food to a small rock. Small pieces of shrimp or a krill would be an example of a neat piece of food.

Unfortunately I don't think the 15 fish in the tank would go along with that.
They scavenge something. They have been in the tank for over a year.

I wonder how long they live?

 

[Jeffcb]

I believe chocolate chip starfish or not reef safe and eat Coral’s so you should look into that

They are in a FOWLR tank with a few Green Slimmer's and some Monies.
The don't eat those but have bull dozed a few over.

 

[Dan_P]

Unfortunately I don't think the 15 fish in the tank would go along with that.
They scavenge something. They have been in the tank for over a year.

I wonder how long they live?

Feed the sea stars at night, after the lights are out and the fish are asleep.

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

Chocolate Chip Stars (Protoreaster nodosus) eat algal films, biofilms, and meiobenthos (benthic organisms like worms and pods and such that are small enough not to be considered macrofauna, but not small enough to be considered microfauna).

If it is Protoreaster nodosus or a Pentaceraster sp., than it's a biofilm eater and will be difficult to feed long term - though biofilm eating starfish can usually survive a decent length of time in large enough aquariums (the smallest recommended tank size I've seen to accommodate this is 75 gallons, but bigger is substantially more likely to be successful as I understand it). Additionally, these species are known to eat corals in aquaria, so that would be something to keep in mind (this is largely thought to be a result of limited preferred food sources - i.e. it's thought that they eat corals when they run out of biofilm). Protoreaster nodosus seems to prefer biofilms that form on sediments and seagrasses, and Pentaceraster spp. seem to prefer biofilms that form on macroalgae (and possibly seagrasses too). So, having some seagrass and macroalgae in the aquarium could potentially help feed these guys, but there's no guarantee.

Edit: just to add - I agree that the star seems to be everting its stomach there to eat/digest (so it's totally fine). Great picture!

 

[Jeffcb]

Chocolate Chip Stars (Protoreaster nodosus) eat algal films, biofilms, and meiobenthos (benthic organisms like worms and pods and such that are small enough not to be considered macrofauna, but not small enough to be considered microfauna).

Edit: just to add - I agree that the star seems to be everting its stomach there to eat/digest (so it's totally fine). Great picture!

I wonder how long they live in the wild. I have had these over a year. This tank does have KP ocean live rock. Maybe that helps.

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

I wonder how long they live in the wild. I have had these over a year. This tank does have KP ocean live rock. Maybe that helps.

Their estimated lifespan is up to 17 years in the wild:

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/230887109_Population_dynamics_reproduction_and_growth_of_the_Indo-Pacific_horned_sea_star_Protoreaster_nodosos_Echinodermata_Asteroidea

Recognition of individual knobby sea stars Protoreaster nodosus (L., 1758) using aboral surface characteristics

A photo-identification method was developed to recognise individual Protoreaster nodosus, a large sea star widely distributed in the Indo-Pacific regi…

www.sciencedirect.com