sick brittle star

[dragracer]

Ok, I think my brittle star is ill. Let me tell you another story 1st. About a month ago my lawnmover blenny dissapeared...literally. I turned the tank upside down and found no trace of him.....he did not carpet surf either. I just chalked it up to natural death and the cleanup crew did their job. Well last night, my brittle star appeared out of his hole while the lights were still on. I woke up this morning and he had moved but still not in his hole.......sidenote....he has never come out while the lights were on. He has now made his way to the opening of his hole but has not gone in yet and he is continueing to move mighty slow. MY question is.....could my blenny have been sick and did brittle star get some peices of him and got sick from it. None of my cleanup crew has turned up dead or seem ill. All the tank params are perfect so its not a water issue and the other fish are healthy and happy. Thanks.

 

[ophiura]

It is not likely that this happened. Does your brittlestar still respond to food when you feed it? I know that you say your water parameters are fine, but I do want to check your specific gravity. These animals prefer higher specific gravity - 1.025-1.026...have you also done any water change recently?
FWIW, brittlestars can become accustomed over time to being out when the lights are on. It would not be all that normal in the wild, but in captivity they may adapt. Mine are out pretty commonly...and don't move very fast until the food goes in.
At this point, I'm not terribly worried. What is worrying with brittlestars is when parts of the arms start falling off.