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do seastar feel pain.


jkreefer

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ok i just got 2 harliquin shrimp and i fed them their first seastar. Everyone that has gone by or seen them eating has commented that they feel sorry for the star fish... so i wnat to do do seastar feel pain?

 

 

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er1c_the_reefer

seastars do have a nervous system sensitive to light, touch, temp, etc. but lack a central brain. since pain is a complex response processed in the brains of most organisms, i'm doubtful that seastars feel pain. otherwise they'd been feeling that phantom pain even when limbs are regenerated...

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what eric says is about right imo :)

 

also, if you setup a sump or separate tank, you can cut off individual arms for them to eat and save a lot of money as the other arms regenerate.

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so, are you saying that when a starfish is "injured" the reaction is merely a stimulus response to touch, rather than an avoidance response to the injury being inflicted?

 

hmm, seems like a fine line...

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er1c_the_reefer

i'm pretty sure its a response to touch, pressure, and improper orientation. you know, kind of like if you were suspended upside down you may not be in pain but would be pretty uncomfortable.

 

pain as we know it is very complex... its a combination of hormonal reactions and nervous reactions. it also involves memories. these are all processed in our brains and organs which seastars lack.

 

after injury, impulses are sent to the brain. we feel the pain, adrenaline is released, heart rate goes up, blood goes into the injured area to begin healing and capillaries contract to reduce blood loss. also, most of the time we don't have to see the pain to feel it. its because out brain can visualize it from memory. this is why amputees feel phantom pain from limbs lost decades ago. now it gets even more complicated. ever notice how sometimes you get a papercut, but don't feel it until you actually see it? if an injury is small enough, your brain doesn't process it until it visualizes it.

 

i'm thinking that its way more complex that seastars...

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i'm pretty sure its a response to touch, pressure, and improper orientation. you know, kind of like if you were suspended upside down you may not be in pain but would be pretty uncomfortable.

 

pain as we know it is very complex... its a combination of hormonal reactions and nervous reactions. it also involves memories. these are all processed in our brains and organs which seastars lack.

 

after injury, impulses are sent to the brain. we feel the pain, adrenaline is released, heart rate goes up, blood goes into the injured area to begin healing and capillaries contract to reduce blood loss. also, most of the time we don't have to see the pain to feel it. its because out brain can visualize it from memory. this is why amputees feel phantom pain from limbs lost decades ago. now it gets even more complicated. ever notice how sometimes you get a papercut, but don't feel it until you actually see it? if an injury is small enough, your brain doesn't process it until it visualizes it.

 

i'm thinking that its way more complex that seastars...

 

thanks for all your replys... i wish i could have a sump... i need to find a place that sells cheap cc stars. 10 dollars a star every 2 weeks will get expensive.

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i highly doubt there is a clear answer to whether or not sea stars feel pain... they can feel, that's for sure, pain is a different story though.

 

although because it's harlequin shrimp that are in question, here the answer is no. when a harley feeds it injects the star with something to paralyze it. the star probably doesnt feel a thing.

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