I have these little asterinas that are munching on my zoas. I heard that blue linckias and nardoa stars would eat asterinas and they look pretty cool! Is there a way I can spot feed them to keep them alive? My tank is about 20 years old.
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Are you talking about starfish or Harlequin shrimpHarlequin Shrimp eat asternia snails, among other starfish and anything else with tube feet, like urchins. They are a sensitive invert and can suffer and die if no3 and po4 are too high. They also will die when they run out of starfish to eat.
52 gallon cornerHow big is your tank?
Not sure on the Nardoa, but the survival beyond ~8-13 months is abysmal for Linckias; I have heard they tend to last while the "asterina" (technically Aquilonastra) population lasts (typically ~2-3 years from what I've seen), but they typically die off after that. They are thought to eat biofilms (something we can't purposefully replicate in our tanks), and I'm not aware of anyone who has successfully kept them alive long term with spot feeding; it might be possible to do so, but I'm not sure (and it would probably be relatively labor-intensive).I have these little asterinas that are munching on my zoas. I heard that blue linckias and nardoa stars would eat asterinas and they look pretty cool! Is there a way I can spot feed them to keep them alive? My tank is about 20 years old.
A Linckia would not kill your urchin, and I doubt a Nardoa would either (last I checked, they're also thought to be biofilm eaters).One more thing, will the starfish kill my urchin.
Ok, thanksNot sure on the Nardoa, but the survival beyond ~8-13 months is abysmal for Linckias; I have heard they tend to last while the "asterina" (technically Aquilonastra) population lasts (typically ~2-3 years from what I've seen), but they typically die off after that. They are thought to eat biofilms (something we can't purposefully replicate in our tanks), and I'm not aware of anyone who has successfully kept them alive long term with spot feeding; it might be possible to do so, but I'm not sure (and it would probably be relatively labor-intensive).
If you're able to farm the Aquilonastra in a separate tank for the purpose of feeding your Linckia, that could be an interesting experiment to do.
Honestly, from what I've seen, the people who can keep reef-safe stars long term don't know why the stars survive in their tanks but not in other tanks. It may be a biofilm thing, it may be an aquarist feeding thing, etc. Regardless, most people just recommend putting the star in a large tank (the minimum recommendation that I've seen is 75 gallons with plenty of rock) and hoping for the best.
A Linckia would not kill your urchin, and I doubt a Nardoa would either (last I checked, they're also thought to be biofilm eaters).
Ooh, prettyBlue Linckia will eat them but not enough to make a dent IME. This is my Linckia in the process of eating an asterina.
Harlequin shrimp will eliminate them but then you have to feed them because starfish are all they will eat.