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03/11/2014, 08:21 PM | #1 |
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Join Date: Oct 2010
Posts: 513
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Friend or Foe?
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03/11/2014, 08:24 PM | #2 |
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Join Date: Feb 2014
Posts: 104
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Freind i think they are sand sifter stars. Lfs has them covering the back glass of their reef tank
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03/11/2014, 08:29 PM | #3 |
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Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: England
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I'm pretty sure that's a Asterina Anomal. It's a very common hitchhiker and highly beneficial as a part of the cleanup crew. It expells it's arms to reproduce and then grows new ones, hence the differnt lengths.
BUT there is a predatory type which looks very similar, it feeds on coral. Sorry, I can't remember the name. I guess you could remove it (and all others that turn up, looks like it's been breeding) or keep an eye on it - Asterina Anomal are herbivores so if it's hanging around coral too much you can wager a fair guess it's not one of those and is actually the bad type (damn I wish I could remember what they're called!). |
03/11/2014, 08:45 PM | #4 |
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Location: San Diego, CA
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Appears to be an asterina, not a big deal, but they do eat coraline, and can get out of hand easy, so I'd ditch it.
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03/11/2014, 08:53 PM | #5 |
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Join Date: Oct 2010
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possible damage from these stars????????
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03/11/2014, 08:57 PM | #6 |
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Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: England
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Yes quite possibly, get rid of them!
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