starfish food?

i'm doing an experiment involving starfish and their orientation toward food. do starfish eat shrimp? i've been mashing up tiny bits of shrimp and placing them in the tank several inches away from the starfish, and they show know apparent interest in the tasty morsel. anyone know what's going on?

 

What kind of starfish are you talking about?

 

What she said
Different stars will eat different foods. The common serpents and brittle stars will eat meaty foods all day long.

Jim

 

My serpent eats krill.

 

Many stars will eat bits of shrimp, even linckias. Not all stars move with a sense of urgency like brittles and serpents can though so don't mistake an "easy going" attitude for lack of interest.

 

Most Stars eat all sorts of meaty foods ie. shrimp, clam, cyclops, rotifers, detritus and an occassional small fish!!!Yes I said fish! The emerald/green brittle will capture and eat a small fish if it is able to trap it so be cautious, all of you who have one in your tank...

 

I second that, I have a sand sifting star and it will eat anything it can get it's arms on. I have to feed it chunks of uncooked shrimp from the grocerier so it doesn't go after the snails. It took down a sick and dying Keyhole Angel. At first I couldn't figure out why my snails were dying and with empty shells in great numbers and one day found the star eating a snail.

 

Toonens thoughts on Linckia feeding were published in his A.A. Invertebrate Non-Column, Sea Stars -- Linckia spp
SEA STARS --- LINCKIA spp

 

What type of starfish do you have? I have a orange linkia and it doesnt really seem to go after any type of food it just cruises around. I guess it eats some alge, left over junk in the rocks. when it goes thru an alge spot it cleans it up pretty well.

I do have mini brittle stars in the rock though there arms stick out and they grab any type of food that floats by there not picky. They dont seem to get over an inch long.

 

Ray,
Nice article on the Linkia
Thanks for the link....... I have never brought one home before and have heard that they were hard to keep. This was a good read and helped me better understand their requirements.

Jim