I like what is said here. I need to point out mine never touched my coral, I have even had a urchin who I swear to this day was eating my montis when there was nothing else in tank to eat. I do reserve the right to be wrong, and it is possible that there are a species of these star fish that do eat coral. But I think what @ajcanale said is more likely. I got tieres of knocking the thousands of star fish off my glass and I always wanted harliquen shrimp. How ever I only got to view mine under moon lights.This is just based on pure observation and personal experience, I think these starfish get a bad rep because people are misunderstanding what is happening. This applies to more than SPS but I believe they are eating dying, or unhealthy flesh. I have a lot of acros and a whole lot of asterenias... white ones, grey ones, white with grey splotch, and have only seem them on a living acro once and it was one that was having a bit of an STN phase. The health of the colony has since began to turn around and I've yet to notice one on it since.
And no, before anyone suggests it, the asterenia was not causing the STN.
Just my experience and 2 cents of course!
Yeah, I'd compare it to a bristle worm being "caught" eating a dead fish. Some people jump to conclusions and assume that they were the ones that killed it, when the more likely scenario is that it died from other reasons and they are consuming the remains, all while preventing a potential ammonia spike.
And then they will starve! My guy would eat a dozen a day.
