Little Starfish. Reef safe?

[AlexFishFriends]

Hello. I just brought in an anemone and some macro algae from a nearby reef store, and I found this little guy crawling around in the back. A little research indicated that it may be an asterina starfish, however, it seems like there might be different species of these, and some are reef safe and some aren’t? I’d love to release him from his shell-jail into the tank, but only if my corals are safe. If not, then my new anemone gets a new snack. His name is Patrick, and his fate is in your hands! (Also I recorded him over my freshwater tank to use the white light.) Thank you for any help.

 

[AlexFishFriends]

 

[redfishbluefish]

You're going to find mixed feelings/opinions about Asterinas. I had them in my last tank....but not in my current tank. Here's what was told to me years ago..... The white/light colored ones are reef safe while the dark ones are potential Coral eaters.

Patrick appears to have some dark portions which makes him suspect.

If you have a sump, put him in there for now. Although they can reproduce asexually, their most common method in home aquariums is to literally split in two.

 

[Joe462]

many are fine (reef safe) but some are not.

 

[exnisstech]

I have asterinas eating zoas and have pulled those types off. I had them for years but now treat them all as coral killers.