Question about starfish

[reefermon]

I have a orange linka star, last couple of weeks it has been in weird positiona, should i be spot feeding him dt plantkon or do they eat something else :notsure:

 

[farslayer]

They eat off of the surfaces of live rock. How many pounds of live rock do you have?

 

[reefermon]

175 lbs i just turned the lights off 4 of his hands are in a normal position but the 5th is bent the oppisite way, if u where looking at him u would see his tenticles on the 1 foot thats bent the opp, way

 

[ophiura]

Nope, most feed on the rocks. You can try feeding something else but there is no clear answer on what they will or will not eat. At least you have the right amount of LR

What are your water parameters?

 

[reefermon]

everything test good salt 1.023, nitrate 0 nitrite 0, amonia 0, ph 8.4

 

[ophiura]

I will say that IMO your specific gravity is too low. 1.025-1.026 is better for these guys IMO - do you test with a refractometer?

 

[reefermon]

should i raise it to 1.25

 

[reefermon]

the starfish is cu

rling up and not movin around has anyone experiencd this with linkas
also there apears to be bumps on the arms but only a few

 

[farslayer]

Could this be acclimitic shock? How long did you take to acclimate him and what method did you use?

 

[ophiura]

Originally Posted by Farslayer
Could this be acclimitic shock? How long did you take to acclimate him and what method did you use?

definitely the next questions.
The experience with Linckia is that they are not really easy to keep and need very specific care. Especially long acclimations to large mature tanks with pristine water parameters. With a low specific gravity - it could be an issue - but you don't want to rapidly raise it either. So you may wish to top off with saltwater instead of fresh until you reach the target. But if acclimation shock, the damage may already be done.

 

[reefermon]

hes been in there for aout a week though would acc. schock just now kick in

 

[ophiura]

Yup...acclimation shock is within a month of introduction.

 

[farslayer]

Yup, certainly can kick in by now. How long did you take to introduce him into your tank?

 

[reefermon]

only about 1 hour he was fine for this last week

 

[ophiura]

That is the trick - they don't show a lot of signs of trouble. Who knows, it may still be OK. But I've had them fine for a month, and then bam, like the 30th day....
Unfortunately, the acclimation time was very short, and your specific gravity is low. That is not a good combination I am afraid

 

[farslayer]

Minimum time for a linkia is 6 hours. Did you drip him in at least? I think acclimitic shock is the problem, so unfortunately I believe he is a goner.