Question About Brittle Star
- Thread starter sin
- Start date
dapak83
Member
from what ive read.. the starss wil ljust go on top of the tank and let there "feet" if u would... jus float on the top... but ive not once have read bout them climbing out!
now this is all what i have read... sooo if ur star climbs out and what i read is wrong doo informe me plz...:-D
now this is all what i have read... sooo if ur star climbs out and what i read is wrong doo informe me plz...:-D
airframer
Member
umm Im not fishman but I am housing 4 stars right now and yes they feed off of the algae and whatever leftovers basically I have had very good luck with mine the choclate chip and the blue one I have I have been told should die within a couple months do to malnutrition but blue Ive had for 3 months and choclate Ive had for 6 and both seem well Knock on wood.. I hope thats handy
sin
Member
Originally Posted by airframer
umm Im not fishman but I am housing 4 stars right now and yes they feed off of the algae and whatever leftovers basically I have had very good luck with mine the choclate chip and the blue one I have I have been told should die within a couple months do to malnutrition but blue Ive had for 3 months and choclate Ive had for 6 and both seem well Knock on wood.. I hope thats handy
WHY WILL THE BLUE ONE DIE OF MALNUTRITION ISN'T IT A ALGAE EATER :notsure:
umm Im not fishman but I am housing 4 stars right now and yes they feed off of the algae and whatever leftovers basically I have had very good luck with mine the choclate chip and the blue one I have I have been told should die within a couple months do to malnutrition but blue Ive had for 3 months and choclate Ive had for 6 and both seem well Knock on wood.. I hope thats handy
WHY WILL THE BLUE ONE DIE OF MALNUTRITION ISN'T IT A ALGAE EATER :notsure:
ophiura
Active Member
THEY ARE NOT ALGAE EATERS... in the sense we are using the term (eg like snails and urchins).
First, brittlestars/serpentstars are TOTALLY different beasts than seastars. These guys are generally opportunistic and while they will "scavenge" for leftover food I do recommend they be spot fed now and then to assure they will get enough food. This could mean something like shrimp pellets and watching that they get some, or actually handing them a piece of something meaty on a skewer. Few, IMO, are "algae eaters" in the sense that they are "grazing" on algae like snails or urchins. I don't think that is likely.
They are not likely to climb out but I suppose it is possible for them to do it accidentally. The predatory nature of green brittlestars is an individual difference. Not all will be predatory, but they are a known predator. They should NEVER be left to scavenge, but spot feeding may not prevent predation.
Chocolate chip stars are predatory and can be spot fed something meaty. And they should be spot fed. They are not reef safe, and may pose a definite threat to snails, clams, corals, anemones, etc.
Blue Linckia or any other reef safe stars DO NOT EAT ALGAE AND ARE NOT EATING DETRITUS OR WASTE. They are NOT part of a clean up crew as commonly sold. They really must have large amounts of LR in the majority of cases - for a blue Linckia, probably a minimum of 100lbs to start...and that is probably an underesitmate. They feed on encrusting critters, bacterial/microbial films or (more likely, IMO) the microscopic creatures that feed on it...the actual diet is unknown. Few, but some, will take to spot feeding but this should not be relied on. This is true of all "reef safe" stars. Many will die of starvation in 9-12 months if there is insufficient LR. 9-12 months is considered the amount of time it takes a healthy wild caught specimen to starve. IMO, NO judgement should be made on their health until they have been in the system at least a year. They are NOT eating nuissance algae such as hair, slime or whatever...otherwise we would basically ALL be able to keep them and it is clearly not the case.
First, brittlestars/serpentstars are TOTALLY different beasts than seastars. These guys are generally opportunistic and while they will "scavenge" for leftover food I do recommend they be spot fed now and then to assure they will get enough food. This could mean something like shrimp pellets and watching that they get some, or actually handing them a piece of something meaty on a skewer. Few, IMO, are "algae eaters" in the sense that they are "grazing" on algae like snails or urchins. I don't think that is likely.
They are not likely to climb out but I suppose it is possible for them to do it accidentally. The predatory nature of green brittlestars is an individual difference. Not all will be predatory, but they are a known predator. They should NEVER be left to scavenge, but spot feeding may not prevent predation.
Chocolate chip stars are predatory and can be spot fed something meaty. And they should be spot fed. They are not reef safe, and may pose a definite threat to snails, clams, corals, anemones, etc.
Blue Linckia or any other reef safe stars DO NOT EAT ALGAE AND ARE NOT EATING DETRITUS OR WASTE. They are NOT part of a clean up crew as commonly sold. They really must have large amounts of LR in the majority of cases - for a blue Linckia, probably a minimum of 100lbs to start...and that is probably an underesitmate. They feed on encrusting critters, bacterial/microbial films or (more likely, IMO) the microscopic creatures that feed on it...the actual diet is unknown. Few, but some, will take to spot feeding but this should not be relied on. This is true of all "reef safe" stars. Many will die of starvation in 9-12 months if there is insufficient LR. 9-12 months is considered the amount of time it takes a healthy wild caught specimen to starve. IMO, NO judgement should be made on their health until they have been in the system at least a year. They are NOT eating nuissance algae such as hair, slime or whatever...otherwise we would basically ALL be able to keep them and it is clearly not the case.
mudplayerx
Active Member
Make sure you spot feed green brittle stars with seafood 2-3 times a week. I have witnessed mine tugging on anemones tentacles and trying to catch my psychedelic mandarin before.
keonia
Member
My green brittle star - can quickly maneuver to the smell of food
My Black brittle star - hides and seldomly comes out!!
Both waves their tentacles around trying to catch some food!!! My Green brittle will eat and eat and eat -- have to be careful not to overfeed because he looks as if he can burst!!!
My Black brittle star - hides and seldomly comes out!!
Both waves their tentacles around trying to catch some food!!! My Green brittle will eat and eat and eat -- have to be careful not to overfeed because he looks as if he can burst!!!
ophiura
Active Member
Originally Posted by sandys
I'm wondering about my sandsifter seastar. Can it be target fed? If so, how and what???
Maybe, but most likely not. Some but not all will take to it but I strongly recommend trying anything to see if it will. Otherwise, they are typically doomed to die of starvation within a year. Anything meaty, placed right next to an arm or arm tip. I don't recommend picking the animal up and putting it on top, but it might come to that to see if it will. But they should be able to smell the food.
I'm wondering about my sandsifter seastar. Can it be target fed? If so, how and what???
Maybe, but most likely not. Some but not all will take to it but I strongly recommend trying anything to see if it will. Otherwise, they are typically doomed to die of starvation within a year. Anything meaty, placed right next to an arm or arm tip. I don't recommend picking the animal up and putting it on top, but it might come to that to see if it will. But they should be able to smell the food.
jojogeno
New Member
I feed my brown brittle star by hand with shrimp pellets... Too bad he only comes on at night. My choclate ate my anemone about a year ago but since I changed my tank and do not have enough light to get another anemone he can stay for the time being. I wait till my choc comes to the top and feed him krill.