Starfish helping brown jelly disease

[Perthegallon]

So I’m watching my starfish eat the brown jelly off my coral that currently has brown jelly diseases. Maybe a good way to help treat it?

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

What kind of starfish is it?

 

[Perthegallon]

What kind of starfish is it?

Black brittle starfish

 

[Perthegallon]

It appears he is even removing the tentacles that are affected and leaving the ones that are clean

 

[I never finish anythi]

Interesting!

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

Black brittle starfish

Any pics of it under white light (preferably a straight-on pic of the top of the star showing the full body)?

 

[Perthegallon]

Any pics of it under white light (preferably a straight-on pic of the top of the star showing the full body)?

I can try to get one. Any reason why?

 

[Perthegallon]

It’s hard to get images of him he gets scared away from light but I’m watching him do such a amazing job of eating the jelly right now he’s putting his tentacles on it and lightly pulling the jelly out and not hurting the coral at all

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

I can try to get one. Any reason why?

Just curious to see if we can get a reasonably specific ID to track if this is something that might be consistent within a certain species/genus/family.

 

[Perthegallon]

Just curious to see if we can get a reasonably specific ID to track if this is something that might be consistent within a certain species/genus/family.

Will do was a little worried at first that you may thought he was using the coral as a meal but now it’s dark in the tank I’m using phone light and he’s carefully pulling the brown jelly and has not seem to hurt the coral at all or bother it

 

[nichthyes]

Will do was a little worried at first that you may thought he was using the coral as a meal but now it’s dark in the tank I’m using phone light and he’s carefully pulling the brown jelly and has not seem to hurt the coral at all or bother it

Did this seem to resolve the issue??

 

[Perthegallon]

Did this seem to resolve the issue??

The coral ended up dying but I do think the starfish helped in giving it increased odds. I do have lots of other touch corals and I do see him carefully move around them at night and other corals I’d definitely keep them in more tanks now