star fish for my 29 gallon

[Moonstream]

Well the title sums it up. I need a star for my 29 gallon reef. There are already snails and a coral. There will also be a pin coushin urchin, 2 shrimps, snails, and hermits. The store has choco chip and serpent stars they also have marbled stars. Which is better? Wich will do a better job? I want to be able to see the star. I really like the blue linkas and the red stars.

[Springmo]

A serpent star (not the green kind) might make a nice addition. Stars in the genus Fromia are reef safe, i.e. marble stars and probably the "red stars" you refer to, as are Linckias. They all have pretty poor survival rates in captivity though and I would pass on them and go with a serpent. In your other post you say you're getting a tuxedo urchin and in this one you say pincushion, which is it?

[Moonstream]

I am not sure, abou the urchins. What about choclate chip stars? It is my understanding that serpent stars are seen very little except for there arms. Also they have bristle stars.

[Moonstream]

Its a pincoushin urchin.

[rssjsb]

Why do you need a star for your tank?

Chocolate chip stars are not reef safe. Linckias won't do well in such a small tank (they're hard to sustain even in much bigger, well established tanks). Some people say that serpents not reliable (never had one), but brittle stars are usually ok if not the green ones Green brittle stars will eat your fish.

[Moonstream]

well... I dont need one, but I really want one. So are marbled good chioces?

[KellyPug]

We had a sandsifting star for my 29gal but moved him to the 55gal. I guess the only thing I don't really like is that he mows over the coral that we have on the sandbed. He doesn't hurt them personally but sometimes he may cause one coral to move into another, like pushing my zoas into my hammerhead or bubble...

[Midus]

I have the same sized tank. I'm also looking forward to getting a Star Fish of some sort. I was particularly looking at the Serpent and Brittle Star types, but their maximum size worried me a bit. Would one feel to closed in inside of a 29 Gallon tank. I have around 35 lbs of live rock and and 3 to 4 inch sand bed. The only other things that I have in the tank now are a couple of Snails, a small(Less than 1 inch) Emerald Crab, and my Lawnmower Blenny(Will a Serpent Star attempt to eat him....).

[LeslieH]

A marbled star is not a good choice. A 29 is way too small for any asteroid star to survive. Stick to ophiuroids (brittle stars & serpent stars) - they should do fine.

[petoonia]

Please dont get a sand sifter either. Most of these starve to death in about a year or so!

I agree with every one else go with a serpent, or brittle star.