ophiura: sea star ID question...

wax32

wax32

Active Member
I am tentatively calling this Nardoa novaecaledoniae. Does this seem reasonable to you? I have had it since this past July and it is doing well, growing and regenerating some limb damage it had when I first bought it. It moves about the tank all day, crawling across the sand, LR, corals and glass. Sorry for the funky picture, it is on the side glass and my glass is thick, making it hard for my camera to focus diagonally through the glass.
 
garnet13aj

garnet13aj

Active Member
I don't know anything about sea stars, but that picture is awesome! I just wanted to throw that out there...
 
wax32

wax32

Active Member
Cool. =)
I have that one and a Ophiolepis superba. I had a Linckia multiflora but it died with the rest of my tank in hurricane katrina.
 
reefreak29

reefreak29

Active Member
Originally Posted by wax32
Cool. =)
I have that one and a Ophiolepis superba. I had a Linckia multiflora but it died with the rest of my tank in hurricane katrina.
i remember seing that star in one off your threads sorry for the loss
by the way beautiful star
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
Nardoa is a reasonable guess. More specific ID would requre a closer look. People throw many names around in this hobby, but many of the IDs given on other sites are wrong.
The important thing to know is that it is a relative of Linckia stars and has basically the same requirements in the general sense.
It is a very nice star
 
wax32

wax32

Active Member
Thanks guys.
I made the ID based on a picture in Tropical Pacific Invertebrates by Colin and Arneson. Of course, they could be wrong, or there could be multiple species that look like this. But the photo in the book is very good and mine looks just like it.
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
It looks quite similar to a picture I have in "Coral Reef Animals of the Indo Pacific" by Gosliner, Behrens and Williams. So probably right. But I also know that the genera of Nardoa, Fromia, Gomophia and similar are a touch tricky to ID :D But it is certainly very close if not it.

So, if it is doing well, you must of course give a full list of tank parameters, etc
 
wax32

wax32

Active Member
To do that I'll have to test my water, which I haven't done in months! But I will and post them up.
Some basic specs: Oceanic 70 gallon RR with a 29 gallon sump, which holds maybe 15 gallons of water. My ~700GPH Eheim return pump supplies all water movement in the tank. I got rid of the 300GPH closed loop I used to have pushing water through a chiller.
1-2" of sand bed in the display, none in the sump at all. I am using the sump as just more water volume. It isn't lit, I have no macro-algae in it. I have a Tunze Osmolator for topping off with RO water I keep in a bucket next to the tank. I do a 6 gallon water change about once a week using Tropic Marin salt.
Lighting is 285W of VHO. Tank temp has been varying from 68 at night to 75 during the day. As I am writing this at 3 in the afternoon it is 71 degrees in the tank, pretty much the same as my current room temp.
I used to run a EuroReef skimmer, but I stopped a few months ago and haven't looked back since. The chiller that used to heat my room up so bad is long gone. The noisy fans that caused so much evaporation, ditto.
The tank currently houses a few hardy fish and mostly soft coral. Species listing:
Dascyllus trimaculatus
Anampses neoguinaicus
Chrysiptera cyanea
Synchiropus picturatus
Calcinus tibicen
Pseudochromis porphyreus
Clibanarius tricolor
Lysmata debelius
Cerithium sp.
Mithraculus sculptus
Cryptocentrus cinctus
Nardoa novaecaledoniae
Ophiolepis superba
Calcinus laevimanus
Paguristes cadenati
Calcinus elegans
Montipora verrucosa
Palythoa spp.
Discosoma spp.
Zoanthus spp.
Trochus spp.
Nassarius spp.
Astraea spp.
I'll get on the tests and post 'em up in a bit!
Anything anyone else wants to know that I left out, feel free to ask.
BTW, here is a little better pic I got earlier today:

You can see some zoanthids and Montipora growing up the overflow. The tank has been running 14 months since restarting after Katrina.
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
Originally Posted by wax32
To do that I'll have to test my water, which I haven't done in months! But I will and post them up.....
I used to run a EuroReef skimmer, but I stopped a few months ago and haven't looked back since. .
I like your style my friend

How much LR?
I have a hypothesis that not doing heavy skimming may allow more extensive growth of things like encrusting sponges, or other microfauna that this sort of star may thrive on. It, like things like Goniopora, may also do better in relatively dirtier tanks, because of the food source it provides. I don't suggest trying to cram these into a small unskimmed tank though....yet
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
I wish for stuff like that growing on my walls. Green with envy there. I've got Anthelia freakin' everywhere- nice enough on overflows and such, but there is a limit :mad:
 
bronco300

bronco300

Active Member
lol, thats what i was thinking, a wall of zoos would be amazing!! and i have thus found my next goal :joy:
 
quaos

quaos

Member
buuuurrr sounds cold :joy: I love the pictures though, and I would love to see a full tank picture. I hope your star thrives :joy:
 
wax32

wax32

Active Member
OK water parameters: pH 8.2, Ca 450 ppm, Alk 3.15 meq/L, SG 1.027, Temp 71.8 PO4 0, but I have some a small amount of hair algae and a clump of chaeto growing in the display.
Couldn't test nitrates because my kit expired.

... Yes, those are zoos growing onto the overflow box, my montipora is doing the same thing. I also have GSPs climbing the side glass.
 
wax32

wax32

Active Member
Originally Posted by ophiura
I like your style my friend

How much LR?
I have a hypothesis that not doing heavy skimming may allow more extensive growth of things like encrusting sponges, or other microfauna that this sort of star may thrive on. It, like things like Goniopora, may also do better in relatively dirtier tanks, because of the food source it provides. I don't suggest trying to cram these into a small unskimmed tank though....yet

Thanks ophiura, I have about 75 pounds of LR in there atm, I had more, but I removed some a few months ago, to give me a better view. I know my shrooms LOVE the new "dirty" water. Some of my zoas like it some don't, can't please everyone!
Quaos: FTS coming right up...
 
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