just when i was about to give up on the asterina star infestation...

[Gseclipse02]

i found my harlequin shrimp hiding in between some rocks. i had not seen him since the first day which was almost 3 weeks ago. I thought my mystery wrasse ate him but i was wrong .... i wonder how long it will take for him to eat them all .. i miss my linckia's being in the main tank :at_wits_end:

[allan]

you're talking about those little white starfish? the short stubby ones? i thought they were good for the tank, aren't they?

[carlinsa]

no they are not something you want. i want to say a couple are ok but they will blow up into sevreal hundeds quickly

[corruption]

This is a hot button topic -- lots are convinced that they are carnivorous, and will go after some polyps such as zoas... In my personal experience, they are a product of poor nutrient exchange, and when they go scavenging, anything you see them eating was likely going south anyway... They can become a pest when their population explodes, but are by definition a beneficial scavenger.

-Corruption

[Kristy]

Asterinas are discussed in a good article in Reefkeeping this month at RC:

http://reefkeeping.com/joomla/index.php/current-issue/article/45-reefkeeping-101-

[devonian]

what is the best way to rid them, if you only have a handful?

[corruption]

Extraction by hand, IMO -- I'm a firm believer of if you keep your nutrient exchange in line, they'll never do anything but good though, so you may hear other methods that work for folks :)

-Corruption

[corkyGramma]

Sorry if this is a bit off topic, but does anyone on currently have a linkia starfish and had long term success-arent those better off left on the reef?

[ErikH]

They will explode if left unchecked, and yes, if you overfeed they will most certainly explode. This is the basis for life. BUT, you put in a predator, and the food chain becomes a dominant factor.

Soon enough your harley will gobble them all up. My star ate my harley and has been one leg shy and in the sump since. My asterinias are on the hunt again, pulled one off a completely irritated colony of PPEs. Small zoa/paly colonies will suffer greatly and could melt away if the offenders are not removed.

[ErikH]

Sorry if this is a bit off topic, but does anyone on currently have a linkia starfish and had long term success-arent those better off left on the reef?


Blue linkias can prover very hard to keep. Best for a pro only :)

[corkyGramma]

Definitely not a novice, but sometimes the limitations of a current system factor in.

[ErikH]

Definitely not a novice, but sometimes the limitations of a current system factor in.


Oh I wasn't poking at your abilities, I just meant in general. :thumbs_up:

I definitely agree that there are issues in keeping them!

[corkyGramma]

I can tell by your posts, you have some dough invested in the hobby!

[Gseclipse02]

Sorry if this is a bit off topic, but does anyone on currently have a linkia starfish and had long term success-arent those better off left on the reef?

ive had my orange one for 9 months or so ...

i bought a blue one it died with in 3 days ..... i hear they are harder to keep


This is a hot button topic -- lots are convinced that they are carnivorous, and will go after some polyps such as zoas... In my personal experience, they are a product of poor nutrient exchange, and when they go scavenging, anything you see them eating was likely going south anyway... They can become a pest when their population explodes, but are by definition a beneficial scavenger.

-Corruption


i had a frag of almost 30 heads of true blue tubs zoa's and they started to die off i ended up picking up the frag to move it and found like 4 of those starfish on it ( im assuming they are what ate it)

[4fun]

Does any one have some good upclose pics of these. I would like to know what to look out for

[stoneroller]

There are many spp. of Asterina some worse at consuming your valuables than others. Not all are carnivores; some eat algae. I see a lot of them on my coralline algae and they can keep your glass algae free. I have also seen them thick on SPS with bad consequences (not in my tank!).

[Europhyllia]

You should scoop them up and sell them! IPSF sells 6 of them for 20 bucks ;) You could be rich!

Add 6 Comet Stars (tiny reef-safe Asterina starfish, great grazers), just $19.95 (http://ipsf.com/index.html#)

[Gseclipse02]

Does any one have some good upclose pics of these. I would like to know what to look out for
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/EchinodermPIX/Asteroids/starfish%20Asterina.jpg

they blend in real well.... can be smaller than a pencil eraser and bigger than a nickel

[Gseclipse02]

You should scoop them up and sell them! IPSF sells 6 of them for 20 bucks ;) You could be rich!

i could be rich but i wouldnt ever sell these things to people

[4fun]

thanks that is really helpful info. i did not know

[Gseclipse02]

yep there pretty common to have from what i have been hearing ... at first we were happy cuz we were "breeding" starfish now im mad lol

[4fun]

sounds like they can really mess up a nice tank. do they like all zoo or just pretty one that cost alot

[4fun]

any way do they show themselves or only move at night when lights are out?

[Gseclipse02]

any way do they show themselves or only move at night when lights are out?


i generally will see more on the glass in the morning ... but if you look on the rocks you can see them anytime

[4fun]

is there some type of fish that will pick them off? like a sniper

[profntbtr]

i hate asterinas they ate all my nice zoanthids. the only solution that ever worked for me was a harlequin skrimp. the only issue is that they are so efficient, that they will wipe out the asterinas, and then you have to buy chocolate chip star for your shrimp to eat every 7-10 days

[Gseclipse02]

i hate asterinas they ate all my nice zoanthids. the only solution that ever worked for me was a harlequin skrimp. the only issue is that they are so efficient, that they will wipe out the asterinas, and then you have to buy chocolate chip star for your shrimp to eat every 7-10 days

i will be passing mine along so i dont have to do this

[txav8r]

I have a ton of them. They don't seem to bother my zoas too much but they do a number on the coraline on my rocks. I might be in for the shrimp when you are done.

[Gseclipse02]

I have a ton of them. They don't seem to bother my zoas too much but they do a number on the coraline on my rocks. I might be in for the shrimp when you are done.

sounds good its going to be a while lol i have lots for him to care of

[Gseclipse02]

well not much has been done, he tends to stay in one place :(

[txav8r]

Bummer. I've been pulling about 20 stars a night out for about a week now. Haven't made a dent.

[Gseclipse02]

Bummer. I've been pulling about 20 stars a night out for about a week now. Haven't made a dent.


im in the same club

[Gseclipse02]

i think i might get another one to speed it up maybe even 2 more

[txav8r]

Get a bunch and pass them on to me when the are done! LOL

[txav8r]

tonight's harvest
http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii234/joat_mon_3/43ba59f2.jpg

[justahobby]

x3. Every time I spend 30 minutes picking them, they come back stronger.

Julian, Have you tried target feeding?

Has anyone had experience with using Nardoa novaecaledoniae for the coralline sucking demons? How reef safe are they?

Dang Jack, you were busy! I hope you aren't playing catch and release.



Originally Posted by txav8r http://maast.org/forums/themes/smooth/buttons/viewpost.gif (http://maast.org/forums/showthread.php?p=708421#post708421)
Bummer. I've been pulling about 20 stars a night out for about a week now. Haven't made a dent.



im in the same club

[Gseclipse02]

holy moly thats a lot

[Gseclipse02]

x3. Every time I spend 30 minutes picking them, they come back stronger.

Julian, Have you tried target feeding?

Has anyone had experience with using Nardoa novaecaledoniae for the coralline sucking demons? How reef safe are they?

Dang Jack, you were busy! I hope you aren't playing catch and release.



Originally Posted by txav8r http://maast.org/forums/themes/smooth/buttons/viewpost.gif (http://maast.org/forums/showthread.php?p=708421#post708421)
Bummer. I've been pulling about 20 stars a night out for about a week now. Haven't made a dent.




what do u mean target feed??? like put a star in front of it ? if so nope i tend not to put my hands in much any more ... ive been lazy

[Gseclipse02]

Has anyone had experience with using Nardoa novaecaledoniae for the coralline sucking demons? How reef safe are they?


i have never seen them but i would rather have this instead of the shrimp

my orange linkia lost part of its leg so i need to do something soon


i read this on a post i found

"I've heard you can shine a light on the sandbed at night and the astrea will come to the light and you can pick them off as they come out of the rock work. "

[Gseclipse02]

"Blue linckias will also eat them, but when I had mine it never erradicated the population"

[txav8r]

No catch and release here. I play catch and dry. If anyone needs some dried asternia stars for a school project, I can hook you up!!

That was about 10 minutes worth of work. I get them off the glass with a turkey baster looking thing I got from Mrs. z28power. I just knock them loose from the glass with the tip and suck them up.

[Gseclipse02]

"Another option is the bongo shrimp if you can't get a star"

[justahobby]

"Another option is the bongo shrimp if you can't get a star"

An expensive option too.

I know I've seen this guy in LFS several times..... I believe reef2u does right now.

http://www.wetwebmedia.com/EchinodermPIX/Asteroids/Nardoa%20novaecaledoniae%20%20MOLG.JPG
file:///C:/Users/Justin/AppData/Local/Temp/moz-screenshot.pngfile:///C:/Users/Justin/AppData/Local/Temp/moz-screenshot-1.png

[Gseclipse02]

i know my shrimp is eating them its just a matter of time ....

ed has a good deal on starfish right now.... im debating on trying the Nardoa novaecaledoniae and getting rid of my shrip