JDK Posted January 2, 2012 Share Posted January 2, 2012 Found this in the tank tonight. Have no idea where it came from because I started my tank with BRS dry rock only. Did not use one piece of live rock. I also found a half of one right after I saw this one (in pic below). I dip all my corals and inspect them thoroughly. The only thing I can think is that it or eggs of it where in the chaeto I bought and it made its way into the tank from the rear chambers somehow? Anyone ID this? I pulled it out of the tank and have it in a drinking glass to be safe. Link to comment
TinyGiant Posted January 2, 2012 Share Posted January 2, 2012 asterina stars .. google em they are fine .. good little cleaners that multiply alot Link to comment
Euphyllia Posted January 2, 2012 Share Posted January 2, 2012 Asternia. IMO, take it out. Those multiply as quick as heck. I have to take tens of them off the glass of my RSM 130 daily. Some argue that they are a good part of the CUC, but they make no difference IME. They haven't done crap for me. They have been known to eat zoas. While some people who are selling them claim the exact opposite, it is a fact that they do. It all depends on the circumstances, and you may not even notice it. They destroyed my Purple Hornet colony. I definitely wouldn't take the chance. It's not like they're evil monsters from the devil though. Whenever you see one, remove it if you wish. If you like them, leave them in there. The only coral they are known to harm is zoas, so if you don't have any or you don't notice them going near them, then leave them in there and enjoy! Link to comment
JDK Posted January 2, 2012 Author Share Posted January 2, 2012 Yeah I took it out. Not sure if the smaller piece was dead or just missing legs. Where did it come from? I started my tank with all DRY rock? Link to comment
Wizzy Posted January 2, 2012 Share Posted January 2, 2012 I currently have a Love/Hate relationship with my Asterina Stars. They are very cool IMO, but I've seen them crawling (eating?) my zoanthids and even a ricordea multiple times. I'm currently deciding whether to remove mine or not. HTH- Wizzy Link to comment
TinyGiant Posted January 2, 2012 Share Posted January 2, 2012 Yeah I took it out. Not sure if the smaller piece was dead or just missing legs. Where did it come from? I started my tank with all DRY rock? prolly came in on the corals you have. Link to comment
JDK Posted January 2, 2012 Author Share Posted January 2, 2012 I dont think it is an asterina. The legs are too defined. Here is a link: http://www.chucksaddiction.com/hitchstars.html I think it is the one in the row directly below the Asterina on the link. I inspect my coral every inch. Dip it and more times than not I remove it from the plug and use my own flat plugs cause I cant stand the plugs with plugs on the bottoms. Asterina: Notice the legs are very wide in proportion to the body: Link to comment
Wizzy Posted January 2, 2012 Share Posted January 2, 2012 I dont think it is an asterina. The legs are too defined. Here is a link: http://www.chucksaddiction.com/hitchstars.html I think it is the one in the row directly below the Asterina on the link. I inspect my coral every inch. Dip it and more times than not I remove it from the plug and use my own flat plugs cause I cant stand the plugs with plugs on the bottoms. Asterina: Notice the legs are very wide in proportion to the body: Good Save JDK! I think your right. Link to comment
JDK Posted January 2, 2012 Author Share Posted January 2, 2012 Here is a the pic from the website I know people hate clicking links. Although the websites pics were copy protected had to screen capture them and crop. The top row is the asterina. The second row is an unknow coral predator possibly related to the asterina. Here is what I found: Link to comment
Atela Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 That does it! Anybody need any Harlequin Shrimp Food? I've got my first order of zoos in the works. I will be spending time picking the little buggers off the rocks! Link to comment
Zer0 Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 Research and close inspection really pays off, and this situation is proof. I would have to agree with you in the fact that you caught the coral predator asterina. I've had many asterinas in my tanks over the years and I've NEVER seen an asterina with a full leg structure like the one in your picture. Most of my asterinas always had half a body, sometimes a bit more, sometimes less. Good catch. You may have just saved some precious coral. Also, just as a reference, dipping your corals wont kill EVERYTHING. It will certainly kill off many things, and you'll be able to see that right away, but there will still be some organisms that make it through the dip. Just keep that in mind. Link to comment
bizzarro Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 I have asterinas, however the color is a bit different and never bothered any corals. Link to comment
boxboy Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 Here is a the pic from the website I know people hate clicking links. Although the websites pics were copy protected had to screen capture them and crop. The top row is the asterina. The second row is an unknow coral predator possibly related to the asterina. Here is what I found: I have the same as the 2nd photo in the top row.. is it a bad thing? Link to comment
Atela Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 Did I read somewhere that the blue asterina starfish is the one that is most likely the zoa muncher? Mine are all a steel blue colored. No pretty little white ones. I have been reading up on this lately, so I don't have all my facts straight yet. Link to comment
JamieSheffield Posted January 3, 2012 Share Posted January 3, 2012 I have a bunch of the same type of tiny yellow-ish, sometimes incomplete starfish wandering my tank...my LFS told me that they are asterina (for what that's worth)... I bet that they came in with your chaeto... Jamie Link to comment
mndfreeze Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Don't be too quick to judge either which way. I have asterina's in my mantis tank. Most look the same, some ARE complete and EVEN legged. Some are not. It's how they reproduce, by splitting. I also have noticed that sometimes I get odd colored ones. In the past I have had other asterina colonies that have a blue/purple hint to them and they seem to eat coralline algae, but otherwise were fine. All were ID'd as 'bad ones' on here and reefcentral when I posted for ID's. So far, all have been perfectly fine. Link to comment
HVani Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 I've also never had any issues with these starfish. Link to comment
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