Asterina starfish????

[chuckdallas]

I have always thought the Harlequin Shrimp are so beautiful. I bought one the other day to put into my 10 gallon tank, which has a damsel fish and banded goby/tiger shrimp and a new pipefish. I was told they only eat starfish and the small white-bottomed starfish on the walls of the 120 gallon tank are asterina starfish, which happen to be GREAT food sources for the Harlequin. I have pulled 2-3 asterina from the 120 gallon tank to 'feed' the harlequin. I was also told that the asterina eat corals, which could be the reason my acans and a trach were dying off. I have a serpent star and 2 sand sifting starfish in the 120 gallon tank. I was told on RC to not get sand sifting stars, but that was way after I had bought the sand sitters. They are still alive after 8 months because I put so much food into the tank for the acans, Dendros and fish.
Should I move the Harlequin to the 120 gallon tank? Will he really et the serpent star and the sand sifters? I really enjoy watching him in the 10 gallon tank and am afraid I'll never see him again in the 120. I'm okay with pulling off asterinas from the glass walls of the 120 and feeding the Harlequin in the 10 gallon.

[dwarf_angels31]

Yeah he will for sure eat the sand sifters and what not..its just up to you if you want to put him in the 110 but he can't live off of asterinas forever.

[SkullV]

What most Harly owners do is Purchase a Chocolate Chip Starfish, keep it in the fuge and cut off a leg (they will regenerate) every couple weeks to feed the shrimp.

[olemiss reb]

Yeah he will for sure eat the sand sifters


he can't live off of asterinas forever.

[NanoReefWanabe]

What most Harly owners do is Purchase a Chocolate Chip Starfish, keep it in the fuge and cut off a leg (they will regenerate) every couple weeks to feed the shrimp.

which point is a leg? i would hate to cut off an arm...LOL

for this reason my wife would not allow me to have a harly...or two..

[chuckdallas]

Buying a Chocolate Chip Star to feed the Harlequin? Will a small 1/2 inch Harly eat that much of a Choc Chip Star? I would have thought that the Asterina would be enough, but I have about 6-10 on the glass every night, so I'm thinking I should put him in the 120 gal tank.

[iyachtuxivm]

If you put him in the 120 he will eat your sand sifters. Possibly the serpent star too, and all the asterinas. You could feed him 10 asterinas a day and he would most likely be fine. I was getting 100-200 a month from local reefers to feed mine until I switched to choc chips. 1 choc chip a month now, the harley was confined to a refugium until last week now hes in the zoa tank as the asterina population is up again. After about 2 weeks I will be buying stars again. They eat a lot. And yes I have seen the small stars people call asterinas eating corals mostly zoanthids although a lfs saw one eating some sps in their display. Its not the white "randomly legged" ones that I have seen eating corals its the grey or red mottled ones with symmetrical legs.(usually 5 when fully developed or in between "fission")

[Spek]

they eat alot and FAST the first time i ever saw one eat a starfish i was amazed at how quickly the tiny shrimp started eating that being said i would go the chocolate chip route and let the asterinas be more of a grazing snack

[katpurdy]

What most Harly owners do is Purchase a Chocolate Chip Starfish, keep it in the fuge and cut off a leg (they will regenerate) every couple weeks to feed the shrimp.

I think I just threw up in my mouth....GROSSSSSSS