SerpentStar, Missing legs

[mvogel8366]

I added a serpent sea star to my tank 3 days ago, it had 5 legs when he went in. Now it has 3.5

Battle Damage?
it's mates are:
2 Firefish
2 Pajama Cardinals
2 Ocelleris Clowns
1 Emerald Crab
9 Red legged hermits
1 Peppermint shrimp
2 Coral Banded shrimp
many various snails

Any illness or strees related causes?

[philter4]

There are several reasons serpent stars lose legs, only one is something else breaks them off. One of the most common is too rapid acclimation. Another common reason is it's handling, I've seen them handled roughly and the arms are damaged. The arms may not fall off immediatly, but a few days later. I have also had some species that do not handle being taken out of the water very well. I'm not sure if it is a species or an individual thing, but sometimes when they are taken out of the water if an air pocket gets into the legs they can lose the leg past the bubble. There is always the possibility that the animal is sick, there could be any number of diseases that could cause the animal to lose legs. What ever the reason, if the star is otherwise healthy and water conditions are good, with food and time the legs will grow back.