Kill all Brittlestars

Discussion in 'Inverts' started by Ryan Duchatel, Nov 30, 2013.

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  1. =Jwin=

    =Jwin= Tassled File Fish

    Joined:
    Nov 26, 2008
    Messages:
    1,968
    Location:
    Chattanooga, Tennessee
    Wow, we've had serpent stars and brittle stars in our tank for years and never, ever had a problem with them. They will scavenge when something passes away, but they've never given a hoot about anything alive.

    Are you sure the shrimp weren't sick? It's a possibility. I highly doubt a brittle star would get the better of a healthy, agile shrimp. I unfortunately have to disagree with you on the "kill all brittle stars" sentiment. At least just return them to your LFS or give them away, it's a total waste to kill something like that because you are mad at it. They're easy to capture, and can even be caught by hand.
     
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  3. pagojoe

    pagojoe Corkscrew Tentacle Anemone

    Joined:
    Jan 14, 2008
    Messages:
    707
    Location:
    Conroe, Texas
    They'll kill shrimp that aren't sick. They first wrap up the legs, then crush them together and break them. Once the shrimp's legs are broken/crushed, then it's easy for the starfish to wrap up and eat the animal. I had one kill every shrimp in my tank as I watched, including a really big coral banded.

    Cheers,



    Don