Does anyone else here have problems with these starfish eating polyps or nibbling on sps? I have had a bloom in them and have been noticing them on random corals during the day and night. It was mainly just a couple polyp frags in my main tank but have seen them wipe out my small frag jf bonsai in the other tank and I think they are hitting on my jf in the main tank now.
I have been pulling a few out each day.
I’ve read there are a lot of different varieties and some eat corals. If they are on a coral I would remove them.
Rosti have loads of them in his DT, according to the pic that he posted in his thread. Maybe he’ll chime in and let us know if he has any problem with them at all.
I don’t have that much in my tank to say it causes problems, but what I can see it don’t do any harm to my corals at all. I must have the good ones and not the bad ones.
I have just shy of a gazillion in my tank. can’t say I’ve ever noticed them eating anything but coraline algae, but that could explain why I have trouble keeping sps.
I would chalk that up to bad husbandry and not the starfish though.
I have the same thing hundreds on the glass after lights out. Go away lights on. Never saw them bother anything and was told 99% are harmless.
I have had them in the past also. I do not believe that they eat SPS.
With that being said, something else is causing your SPS problems.
Interesting read here:
Jeff are you having mysterious sps problems also?
I checked the nitrates,ammonia,phosphates. My nitrites are down to 10ppm and the ammonia,phosphates are 0. The only thing that has changed in my tank may be flow since I have played with the settings on my mp20 and that I added phosgaurd in the sump.
And i have noticed a increase in the amount of astrea stars in the tank which I have seen on my sps and zoanthids. Some of the zoa’s are still healing after the encounter, they did not get hurt to bad since I noticed it and pulled the stars off.
[quote=“saltcreep, post:8, topic:5436”]
Jeff are you having mysterious sps problems also?[/quote]
Just started and has only affected the Jason Fox piece. nothing else has been affected at all that I have noticed. I am still trying to get rid of the sps I am going softies and some lps and clams of course route.
Just blame your toadstool… it works for me :
:
i noticed the whitish base of the jf maybe a coral rx dip can help before its gone. I you have seen these stars eat the coral then you are in the 5% like the article says I personally would do a harlequin if you can take it back or keep it fed, but thats me. I have had these stars on numerous occasions and have had blooms. I never see them on corals. some were on my zoos but haven’t caused damage, they are never on any other coral tissue.
[quote=“saltcreep, post:11, topic:5436”]
Just blame your toadstool… it works for me ::[/quote]
You laugh but I know I have seen threads involving sps doing bad in a tank full of softies like the leathers.
[quote=“dunk, post:12, topic:5436”]
i noticed the whitish base of the jf maybe a coral rx dip can help before its gone. I you have seen these stars eat the coral then you are in the 5% like the article says I personally would do a harlequin if you can take it back or keep it fed, but thats me. I have had these stars on numerous occasions and have had blooms. I never see them on corals. some were on my zoos but haven’t caused damage, they are never on any other coral tissue.[/quote]
I thought about doing that today. My coral rx expired 
The whiteness has been very slow on it I think it is bleaching but I could be wrong. I am going to see Rosti tonight so I will see what his take is on it and put it in his qt or dt if he gives it the ok.
[quote=“reefman66, post:3, topic:5436”]
Rosti have loads of them in his DT, according to the pic that he posted in his thread. Maybe he’ll chime in and let us know if he has any problem with them at all.[/quote]
i do see them on SPS and seafan, usually if coral has problems they are there, but i don’t think they cause the problem. Maybe they are feeding on algae growing on weak coral.
I had one in my tank that grew to just shy of the size of a dime. He stayed on one rock the entire time though. Then the little bugger got kicked off the rock and floated around until being sucked into my overflow comparment. Now he just stays there… but I never more than the one.