Starfish Horror Story

Matt Rogers · 01-19-2005, 02:25 PM

Last night was kind of creepy...

I was on the phone and was looking into my tank when I noticed this orange glob stuck in my Tunze pump strainer.. I didn't even recognize it at first.

Then I realized it was my Linkia starfish!

:'(

I tried to pull it off but one of it's legs had made it's way into the strainer and I had to pull real hard to get it out of there. As I was doing this, I noticed that the leg was reduced to mostly bone - most of the meat was gone.

When I got it off, it looked like a goner. It was mutilated real bad. Not just the one leg, but the whole thing from the force of the pump. :'(

It was so rough, that the first thing I did was throw it in the trash can. I mean, it was hard to recognize what it was!

Then several minutes later I was feeling bad, I remembered that they can grow back new legs. SO this was about 20 minutes since I tossed it but I dug through the trash and pulled it out.

It had loosed up a bit and was no longer in a ball. At this point I made a decision, I held it with one hand and snapped the bone/rest of the leg off with the other.

I know you are not supposed to expose these things to air, but I decided to put it back in the tank.

SUre enough 30 minutes later it was crawling around in there - bones exposed and everything. Not just on the missing leg either - this thing is beat up bad!

But, hey, it's alive. And I hope it pulls through. That's gotta hurt!

matt

jnbahwkins · 01-19-2005, 02:34 PM

Dude Post a Pic!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Matt Rogers · 01-19-2005, 02:53 PM

heh. wish I had thought about that . I was a little shocked out.. If I see it tonight, I'll snap one.

jnbahwkins · 01-19-2005, 03:04 PM

Find it.....snap a pic....I want to see.

maybe you can start a new forum

Dead or injured

People can post all the gruesome stuff there like dead fish, corals,orange blobs etc............

But really i hope it does recover.

Birdlady · 01-19-2005, 03:53 PM

Oh! I hope he is OK! Those strainers are so long, I didn't think stuff could get sucked into those!

Jason McKenzie · 01-19-2005, 04:38 PM

Ouch Matt I hope it pulls through. You can call it stumpy

J

Bruce · 01-19-2005, 07:11 PM

god...thats cool if he makes it...i second the name STUMPY!

Lionel · 01-19-2005, 07:31 PM

he will be fine. You can take a starfish, and cut him into five pieces, as long as each piece gets part of the stomach, they will grow into a new starfish.

it's kinda like fragging corals

Matt Rogers · 01-19-2005, 07:37 PM

Yeah I've heard that too. What worried me, beyond the mutulation, was the fact that he was in the bottom of my trashcan out of water so long!

But alas, here's a pic of Stumpy I just took - tough little guy!

Bruce · 01-19-2005, 08:33 PM

GO STUMP GO! Lets all make a "Get Well Soon" Card!...brave little bugger