Help id starfish for newbie
- Thread starter Cug_21
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Looks like a brittle starfish and asterina starfish.
For the most part harmless. Asterinas can irritate some corals and sometimes they even eat zoas.
I dip all my coral and try not to introduce anything foreign into my tank unless I specifically want it in my tank.
For the most part harmless. Asterinas can irritate some corals and sometimes they even eat zoas.
I dip all my coral and try not to introduce anything foreign into my tank unless I specifically want it in my tank.
Micro brittle on top. asterina on bottom.
Both are generally harmless, and their population in your tank will depend on how much leftover food and fish poop accumulates. If it's really dirty, these guys will grow in numbers and eat all the detritus. Once the tank gets clean their numbers will fall back off.
Some people will tell you that asterina starfish are Armageddon and will eat every single coral in your tank and will even eat the rocks and sand and eventually you'll have nothing but a tank of water then they'll eat the glass and all the water will spill out in your house and...
I don't believe all the "asterinas are bad" hype. I've had them in my tanks for 2 years and I've never seen one eat a coral, and I have a lot of zoas growing in my tank.
Both are generally harmless, and their population in your tank will depend on how much leftover food and fish poop accumulates. If it's really dirty, these guys will grow in numbers and eat all the detritus. Once the tank gets clean their numbers will fall back off.
Some people will tell you that asterina starfish are Armageddon and will eat every single coral in your tank and will even eat the rocks and sand and eventually you'll have nothing but a tank of water then they'll eat the glass and all the water will spill out in your house and...
I don't believe all the "asterinas are bad" hype. I've had them in my tanks for 2 years and I've never seen one eat a coral, and I have a lot of zoas growing in my tank.
I didn't believe it either until I witnessed an Asterina star literally eating away at my Flaming Mohican polyp.
Sheesh... I had a lot, until I added a brittle star. Not the micro variety. It was about 3" when I got it. It was probably 5" last time I saw it and that was several months ago. I know it's still in the tank, because it has a bare spot under one rock where it pushes all the sand away.
Since I added that I've noticed my asterina population dwindle. Either it's a better forager, or it's eating them... I'm not sure.
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