starfish or not?

[rebecca]

i have what looks like very small britle star fish ,hundreds of them .there even on a pipe organ coral and is apearing to kill it ,what are they or what am i to do ?

 

[cranberry]

Is there like bunches of little legs sticking out of every crevice? It's a mini brittle star, if yes. They'll stay about that size and every now and then you'll see one out for a daily stroll on the glass. Harmless. They are not killing your pipe organ.

 

[spanko]

Yup, and great helpers in eating left over food and other detritus in the tank. You will find that they will wax and wane with available nutrients in the tank.
No worries here, enjoy the diversity.

 

[t316]

Will fish eat them? I have hundreds of them in my bare bottom sump that I was thinking about transferring to the DT, just didn't know if they would get eaten...

 

[cranberry]

Ya, I'm sure there are fish that will eat them.... I just don't know specifically any that does.

 

[spanko]

They are pretty good at getting into crevices where fish can't get to them. Go ahead and add them to the tank.

 

[ophiura]

The mini britlestars in our tanks (two primary species) reproduce very well. so in addition to being fairly well protected from predation in general, those that remain will still reproduce and make up the difference usually.

 

[t316]

Originally Posted by ophiura
http:///forum/post/3228139
The mini britlestars in our tanks (two primary species) reproduce very well. so in addition to being fairly well protected from predation in general, those that remain will still reproduce and make up the difference usually.
So should I leave them in the sump? I tried to scoop up a few to move to the DT, but they are like glue on the glass.....very content. I hated to totally stir them all up (because they will just get sucked thru the pump.....not the way I was intending to send them to the DT).