Asterinas all bad?
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VintageReefer
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We don’t know for sure and are working on categorizing. There’s about 14 versions and some are very very similar.
In my experience ones with red on the back / top are ones that are more likely to eat zoa.
In my experience ones with red on the back / top are ones that are more likely to eat zoa.
SFREEF3R
Active Member
I welcomed mine as additional biodiversity, but it turns out the ones I have took a liking to coraline algae and started to pick my rocks clean. I nearly eradicated them through aggressive culling but a few months later they were back. I must have missed some.
Interestingly I put some in my dark sump as an experiment and they have continued to multiply, leading me to believe the algae eating species may actually are omnivorous.
I still remove them when I see them and can easily reach them but have resigned myself to having them as permanent additions. I think I probably wouldn’t add them given the choice to do it again, but it’s not tragic to have them either.
Interestingly I put some in my dark sump as an experiment and they have continued to multiply, leading me to believe the algae eating species may actually are omnivorous.
I still remove them when I see them and can easily reach them but have resigned myself to having them as permanent additions. I think I probably wouldn’t add them given the choice to do it again, but it’s not tragic to have them either.
Paul B
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In the morning my front glass looks like the Andromeda Galaxy because it is covered with them. I like them. 
VintageReefer
10K Club member
I liked them too. For 20+ years. Then somehow a zoa eating strain got in my system. They were identical when viewed “on the glass” but the backs had different texture and patterns. I examined every one I could see in my tank. 1 out of 20 appeared to be the different ones.In the morning my front glass looks like the Andromeda Galaxy because it is covered with them. I like them.
I had no choice but it introduce a harlequin. My zoanthids thanked me and have regrown and the losses stopped and colonies rebuilt.
I don’t have the harlequin anymore and I still have asterina. I reduced my population 80% and I will watch my zoas and anytime is see these tiny starfish I check them. I occasionally still find baby red backed ones and toss them. The pure white ones I keep and they cause no issues
chema
Active Member
Mine ate coralline to the point that they almost made it disappear. I introduced a harlequin shrimp and now they are under control. Coralline is recovering as showed by the increased surface on rocks and glass and the increase in alkalinity consumption
VintageReefer
10K Club member
I’ve never had a coralline eating variety.
@taricha see post 4 and 7
Two different users both reporting a variety that targets coralline
Apparently we now have 3 types to identify and categorize:
Reef safe
Zoa eating
Coralline eating
chema
Active Member
I have had asterina for a long time. At the beginning they did not seem to bother anything in the tank. I can not speak about zoanthus because I have none (they are like candy for all my dwarf and big angels). Then, at some moment, I noticed the pink coralline alga was going down and replaced by a dark red coralline. My conclusion is that asterina (either the original strain or a new one recently introduced) were eating the pink coralline as the situation was reversed by the addition of the harlequin.
If they are two different species or varieties I can not say. Morphologically seem the same.
VintageReefer
10K Club member
In the aquarium hobby most people think these starfish are all the same. But researchers and scientists have identified at least 14 types and also noted the diets are different, some confirmed to eat coral
We don’t know how to identify the good from the bad
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Where in location was the rock from?
Or do you think it spent a bunch of time in a seller's system, so that's the likelier place the stars came from?
If either of you have pictures of the coralline munching ones, I'd love to see.
I’m going to have to find the video - but one of the sponsors (tidal gardens) made a comment about them. Which pretty much went ignore them unless they over run… and that they are great clean up crew. I got a few that hitch hiked in from tidal gardens… i have yet to see them do any harm.
toi_ss
Active Member
I culture them in my sump for my blue linckia stars, the only way I have been able to keep blue linckia alive. I think the only harms asterinas could do is possibly smother corals and eat coralline
chema
Active Member
I'l try to take photos of the asterina, although the harlequin shrimp have worked so well that is not easy to find them. LOL
Tonycass12
Valuable Member
I don't know if some were eating bits of my sps but they were causing enough irritation that I was getting tissue recession around the areas they would like to hang out on my corals. Get a couple harlequin shrimp if your worried. It doesn't take long until you have to start buying starfish because the harlequin have snacked on every starfish in the tank.
chema
Active Member
I'm in that situation now. I have to provide some food to my harlequin. I'm using frozen starfish legs and hope the harlequin find them tasteful enoughI don't know if some were eating bits of my sps but they were causing enough irritation that I was getting tissue recession around the areas they would like to hang out on my corals. Get a couple harlequin shrimp if your worried. It doesn't take long until you have to start buying starfish because the harlequin have snacked on every starfish in the tank.
I welcomed them, actually asking for some at my LFS last time I got frags there.
So far it's mostly been fine, most have divided, one even developing 7 legs instead of 6, and out of maybe a dozen, there was a singular known individual that was going after zoas, and coralline. It was a split individual, so we'll see if another split, presumably its other half will go after them. Also interesting is that this feeding behavior has only happened in the last 10 days, but the asterinas have been in for months. The new zoas they've gone after have been in the tank for maybe 2-3 weeks. Of now is that since cycling I have not fed this tank at all, but may start soon.
My favorite one, which hasn't split and is notably different color has been totally fine. That one has much more blue/ orange pigmentation than the rest.
I'll be keeping watch on their behavior, but if it was simply 1 in a dozen that went after the zoas, and that one has been removed, I see no reason to cull more. I accept mine being a starfish tank with a few corals in it.
So far it's mostly been fine, most have divided, one even developing 7 legs instead of 6, and out of maybe a dozen, there was a singular known individual that was going after zoas, and coralline. It was a split individual, so we'll see if another split, presumably its other half will go after them. Also interesting is that this feeding behavior has only happened in the last 10 days, but the asterinas have been in for months. The new zoas they've gone after have been in the tank for maybe 2-3 weeks. Of now is that since cycling I have not fed this tank at all, but may start soon.
My favorite one, which hasn't split and is notably different color has been totally fine. That one has much more blue/ orange pigmentation than the rest.
I'll be keeping watch on their behavior, but if it was simply 1 in a dozen that went after the zoas, and that one has been removed, I see no reason to cull more. I accept mine being a starfish tank with a few corals in it.
Tonycass12
Valuable Member
My shop regularly had chocolate chip starfish in and I get them for 20$. One of them will last mine 1.5-2months
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KrAt0s
Community Member
Those shrimp must have a crazy appetite! If I can keep enough Asterinas in my other tank maybe I can have a stable enough food source to get harlequin.
