Brittle attacks after two years!

[jisushika]

I've had my giant green brittle star for about two years now. I got him when he was only a couple inches across and now he is one foot long from arm to arm. In those two years he never touched any fish or inverts. However the past couple weeks I added a six line wrasse and a yellow goatfish to my tank and they did great for about a week. Overnight, the goatfish disappears without a trace. And then a couple days later the sixline disappears only a half hour after feeding. He ate fine, and then I come back and no sign of him or his body anywhere. I'm thinking the brittle is the culprit? but why would he suddenly attack now after so long?

That might explain why my peppermint shrimp disappeared too?

 

[renogaw]

i'd doubt a brittle is the culprit, but is just doing it's job.
how'd you acclimate the two fish?
there's just no way a brittle can catch a peppermint shrimp or healthy fish and them not be able to get away.

 

[eliteaqua]

Read up on the Green Brittle and you will know he is the one. They arch themselves under a rock and drop onto unsuspecting fish.

 

[reefkprz]

Originally Posted by Jisushika
but why would he suddenly attack now after so long?

because after two years he is much larger, if you havent increased to amount of food he gets to compensate for the increasee in size (and hunger) then he has to get nutrition how he can. this species can/will hunt if not fed enough. if you feed him enough chances are he wont bother wasting energy on hunting. but it will always be a potential problem.

 

[renogaw]

Originally Posted by eliteaqua
Read up on the Green Brittle and you will know he is the one. They arch themselves under a rock and drop onto unsuspecting fish.

gah, misread brittle for bristle

 

[ophiura]

This species is a KNOWN PREDATOR IN THE WILD.
It must be kept very well fed - how often and what do you feed it?
However, don't overlook other issues. These were new introductions, and new introductions FREQUENTLY die for other reasons. I would find it personally unlikely that the brittlestar would catch and eat to sizable fish within days.
We like to think that our animals are all perfectly healthy and were killed, when the sad reality is that most of our animals die for other reasons.
This is a brittlestar that just ate a shrimp...you would NOTICE if the star ate them...

 

[perfectdark]

Originally Posted by ophiura
This species is a KNOWN PREDATOR IN THE WILD.
It must be kept very well fed - how often and what do you feed it?
However, don't overlook other issues. These were new introductions, and new introductions FREQUENTLY die for other reasons. I would find it personally unlikely that the brittlestar would catch and eat to sizable fish within days.
We like to think that our animals are all perfectly healthy and were killed, when the sad reality is that most of our animals die for other reasons.
This is a brittlestar that just ate a shrimp...you would NOTICE if the star ate them...

WHAT !!!! OMG... THAT IS CRAZY....

 

[jisushika]

Well finally after a day of being missing, my six line shows up

The goatfish has been missing for about a week though and I do feed the brittle chunks of frozen brine shrimp. At night the goatfish would hang out right near the brittle, thats why I think he got eaten during the night?

 

[renogaw]

surprised it's lived that long on brine. give it some real food and you won't miss any fish

 

[ophiura]

Definitely...chunks of brine shrimp is not a good long term diet.

 

[tokey]

I would get rid of it as soon as possible I have read so many stories of them wiping out whole tanks. I would ban him to your sump if you have one. Do a search on them and you can read all the horror stories your self.

 

[jisushika]

Originally Posted by Tokey
I would get rid of it as soon as possible I have read so many stories of them wiping out whole tanks. I would ban him to your sump if you have one. Do a search on them and you can read all the horror stories your self.
Yup, I already took him to the LFS. Anyone know if the red brittles eat fish too? Or can someone recommend a reef safe and fish safe star?

 

[detguy313]

this is my red serpent that i have and never had a problem with him i have had him for 3 years now i feed him squid krill and silversides..i had two but one is now in my fuge..i really love this guy...this is an old pic he is always in the rock work and hard to get a pic of

 

[ophiura]

Originally Posted by Tokey
I would get rid of it as soon as possible I have read so many stories of them wiping out whole tanks. I would ban him to your sump if you have one. Do a search on them and you can read all the horror stories your self.

WIPING out whole tanks?? There is truth, and there is hype, and that is hype.

FWIW, I have 3 very large green brittlestars (and a whole bunch of other types) and can not accuse them of anything. They are in a 45g with a sixline wrasse in particular, that they have lived with for 8 years.
I had a shrimp go missing. Its possible they ate it. It is also equally, if not MORE likely that it died during a molt cycle.
I had a clown goby go missing, within 24 hours of introduction. It is also possible they caught and ate it, but equally, if not more likely that it just didn't acclimate well and died of stress.
This is a KNOWN predator in the wild, there is real potential there, but stories of it eating all inhabitants in a tank...including coral, triggerfish, etc, etc...are WAY overblown, and many are probably missing they actual reason their animals are dying.
This is why it is always important to be really open to assessing your tank and what may be going on.

 

[ophiura]

BTW, if you do not want ANY risk of anything being caught and eaten in your tank...do not get any brittle or serpentstar. Do not get a chocolate chip, general, african or cushion star, do not get a purple Linckia (or even some other Linckia), sand sifter stars...or any crabs (hermit or otherwise), several types of fish, shrimp, anemones and remove instantly any type of worm you see in the tank.
Because they all have potential to kill things you don't want.
I will not state that any star is guaranteed safe. Brittlestars and serpenstars are opportunistic. Deprived of food, they will resort to other means. They do not realize they have lost the game of "growing large and reproducing" by being captured. They will follow their instinct, which is the risk in this hobby.
I have heard nearly every brittle and serpentstar species in this hobby accused of some sort of predation - IMO most of it is hype.