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gabe3d
11/14/2006, 05:50 PM
Recently i've had an outburst in the number of starfish i have in my tank. I don't know exactly where they come from and if they are good or bad so if someone can help me, please chime in. They are very small about the size of a pencil head, their legs are not always symmetric and they don't always have 5 legs (3-5). I see them hanging out on my zoas a lot and was wondering if they are the culprit for the slowy diminishing numbers.

Thanks
sir_dudeguy
11/14/2006, 05:54 PM
gosh, i cant think of the name i'm thinking of, but they are not harmfull for the most part. A lot of the local people here in az say they see em' on their zoas from time to time, but they never actually do anything to the zoas...just like if a snail were to go over them.

I'll think of the name right after i post this i bet :)
Paintbug
11/14/2006, 05:59 PM
Asterina stars.
http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-06/ac/feature/index.php
sir_dudeguy
11/14/2006, 06:00 PM
hey....i remember the name...asterina snails! (lol thanks paintbug :) )
Paintbug
11/14/2006, 06:01 PM
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8546923#post8546923 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by sir_dudeguy
hey....i remember the name...asterina snails! (lol thanks paintbug :) )

odd looking snail :D
gabe3d
11/14/2006, 06:09 PM
Thanks guys for the replies.

I read the article on asterina and it they don't sound too hot to have in the tank or I should say iffy. Do you guys know how I can get rid or stabilize their population?
Paintbug
11/14/2006, 07:10 PM
actually most are good to have in the tank. most Asterina stars are algae eaters. in the past like bristleworms they have gotten a bad name, but as time goes on people have realized they are good to have. i have probably 50+ in my tank. i have never seen a problem with them. some people have reported some species have eaten their SPS corals, but i havent had that problem.
greenbean36191
11/14/2006, 07:14 PM
How do you think you ended up with so many of them? They had to be feeding on something. You would have noticed already if it was your corals. I would leave them. It's extremely rare to have them cause problems.
AquaReeferMan
11/14/2006, 07:26 PM
Its easy for them to multiply. They just drop off a leg and that starts a new star. I have tons of them. Only a few have the actually shape and have 5 legs. Most of them are only pieces. I know IME and with Sk8r they have been chowing down on coralline. All and all they are pretty harmless though.
gabe3d
11/14/2006, 07:49 PM
I've noticed them a long time ago but their numbers have reached to the point where i'm wondering if it is ok for them to be in there. It seems that the majority of the people think they are ok, so i'll spare them for now.

Thanks
Kigs
11/14/2006, 08:47 PM
i heard that there are some species that will chow down your zoas, so keep a look out. if you did want to get rid of them, get a harlequin shrimp. they will keep the star population under control. one or two, depending on your tank size and star population size
giantxtc
11/14/2006, 09:16 PM
I've had explosions of these in the past.They will eventually mostly disappear,then sometimes come back.I've had an explosion of brittle stars recently.Little black and white ones.