Chocolate chip starfish developed sacks on back?

[jazzmanmo]

My CC starfish has been fine for years. No changes to fish stock. He was active and going to the top often. Now he never goes more than half way. Another problem is a couple of his chocolate chips are missing. One missing area has developed these white sacks (pictured). I am not sure if it is an infection or something different. I hand feed him regularly, the same way for two years. This change in behavior and body damage has happened over the past month. I don't know if another fish is attacking him (never been a problem before) or if it has a sickness.

Anyone know what the sacks are, or can offer any guidance from past experience? I have about 5 or 6 baby starfish that appeared out of nowhere last year and do not want to risk any disease spreading if it is in fact that.

 

[Stomatopods17]

its melting.

What you're seeing are the white beads that make up the starfish's internal structure, it'll look like pebbles on the sandbed when its fully melted.

I don't think its reversible at this point, typically you can cut off a leg thats obviously doing poor and it'll grow back, but the central disk here looks infected.

What tankmates does it have?

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

Welcome to Reef2Reef and sorry about your starfish!

Yeah, it seems to be dying, and it looks rather pale and lean. It does look like something may have been pecking at it, but I'd guess if that's happening that it's probably because the star is dying (as opposed to the star dying because of the pecking).

Theoretically, with enough good food and good water quality, it may be able to recover over time, but I wouldn't count on it at this point. Even the longest-lived, biofilm-feeding starfish (Chocolate Chip Starfish, Protoreaster nodosus, is a biofilm-feeder in the wild) which can live for decades in the wild seem to live only a few years at the longest in our tanks at the moment.

 

[jazzmanmo]

its melting.

What you're seeing are the white beads that make up the starfish's internal structure, it'll look like pebbles on the sandbed when its fully melted.

I don't think its reversible at this point, typically you can cut off a leg thats obviously doing poor and it'll grow back, but the central disk here looks infected.

What tankmates does it have?

Thanks for the feedback. It got cut up about a year ago probably freeing itself when it got stuck in between some rock. It has scars, but still came back 100 percent from that. I tested water levels and they all seem to be normal. Never seen any fish bother it or attack it. When i feed it shrimp, the chromis will sometimes swoop in and try to grab the shrimp, but never bothers the starfish when it covers the food up.

My tank only has two clowns, a damsel, a rainbow wrasse, and a chromis. All small fish, 75 gallon tank. I had some snails and blue legged crabs. They did well escaping at first, but obviously the CC won and only shells remain.