The dreaded asterina stars

Discussion in 'Inverts' started by gabbagabbawill, Apr 7, 2011.

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  1. gabbagabbawill

    gabbagabbawill Pajama Cardinal

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    It started with the little white stars, all six legged. As I've read most folks say the six legged ones are safe and eat algae... well, they have taken off and they're all over the tank... but now there are lots of mottled/ spotted ones like in the picture, and these have anywhere from four to seven legs... Found this seven legged asterina start on my monti cap the other night, which appeared to be eating it at the base. I pulled it off with tweezers...

    Well, today I was in the fish store, and they had harlequin shrimp for a great price, so I picked one up!!! I love these shrimp, and I have SO many asterinas that I believe it will be fed for a while to come... I am going to keep a close watch on the population of these stars and if they begin to decline, I will consider feeding the harlequin with a feeder star (the choc chip stars being a popular choice).

    I really can't have these predatory asterinas eating my corals, so the harlequin was a must have.

    Oh, and she came in with a bunch of eggs on her... has anyone ever had success with breeding these in captivity?

    I picked an asterina off the glass and fed her this one with tweezers, she gladly took it and began eating it right away!! BTW, she's pretty large, about 3" in length!!
     

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    Last edited: Apr 7, 2011
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  3. inwall75

    inwall75 Giant Squid

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    1 person likes this.
  4. FaceOfDeceit

    FaceOfDeceit Hockey Beard

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    My wife wants one BAD! I told her that if we won the EcoPico contest, I'd get her one and utilize it as a Zoa/Paly/Ric tank with the Harlequin. Unfortunately, we did not win. So now I'm going to have to put my 225 build on hold to get the EcoPico build going. Bumps in the road...;)
     
  5. barbianj

    barbianj Hammer Head Shark

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    Fwiw, cc stars are not reef safe.
     
  6. VitalApparatuz

    VitalApparatuz Feather Duster

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    I went the same route two months ago.My harlequin is getting fat and the stars are fewer and fewer :)
     
  7. Powerman

    Powerman Giant Squid

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    You will be suprised. Mt LFS was only getting baby Harleys... was afraid it was going to be someones lunch. That little 1" Harley desimated my HUGE Asterina population in a about 2 months. You will definitely be feeding him stars. Great addition though. I really liked mine.
     
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  9. jsreef218

    jsreef218 Bristle Worm

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    buffalo Ny
    Hey all, I also am INFESTED with those little guys. I was wondering if there is anything to do other then the shrimp to get rid of them as I've never seen one at any of my lfs. Any suggestions would help thanks!
     
  10. Powerman

    Powerman Giant Squid

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    You can sit there and pick them out for hours, or you can tell your LFS to order one. I wiped mine out several times only to see them all come back. Iwas giving them to my LFS for them to feed their personal one. Finally got tired of it.
     
  11. leighton1245

    leighton1245 Horrid Stonefish

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    so these little stars are bad I have like 3 in my tank so far?
     
  12. Powerman

    Powerman Giant Squid

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    Mine were not. I never saw them on any corals at all. Just get pretty unsightly when there are thousands.