Have you kept a Harlequin shrimp?

[Ocean Lotion]

I will be picking one up of these guys today to deal with my asteria starfish issue. How long did it take to rid your tank of asteria and then if you kept it how often do you have to feed it a leg of a starfish?

 

[Crabs McJones]

I will be picking one up of these guys today to deal with my asteria starfish issue. How long did it take to rid your tank of asteria and then if you kept it how often do you have to feed it a leg of a starfish?

I had one that I kept in my 40 breeder, it ate up most of my asterina starfish, and when I ran out (didn't see anymore, they're back now with a vengeance lol) I didn't want to keep buying starfish so I found a local reefer that needed one for his asterina starfish problem and gave it to him. To my knowledge he still has it, and buys starfish for it to eat every other week.

 

[Ocean Lotion]

Just ca me from the lfs. Of the 6 boxes of stuff they ordered 2 boxes did not make the transfer in Louiville. Of course my bumble bee and trokus snails along with my shrimp won't show till tomorrow now. Aarrgg.

 

[ca1ore]

I had hundreds of asterina in my tank - took a pair about 2 months to eat them all. Then I paid them forward to a friend. That former friend of mine claims they eat his chalice corals - I'm skeptical.

 

[RussiReef]

I have two in my 280 gal tank. They keep asterina under control

 

[Ocean Lotion]

I had hundreds of asterina in my tank - took a pair about 2 months to eat them all. Then I paid them forward to a friend. That former friend of mine claims they eat his chalice corals - I'm skeptical.

I just bought a chalice. Will keep an eye on it.

 

[CNDReef]

I just bought one to try to eradicate my mini brittle stars he’s definitely eating but I don’t know if it’s the brittle or the asterinas

 

[Ocean Lotion]

I just bought one to try to eradicate my mini brittle stars he’s definitely eating but I don’t know if it’s the brittle or the asterinas

Great. My asterIna stars graze all my cor aline algae. Ice to not have it on my glass and powerheads but my rocks are bare.

 

[EmdeReef]

Just ca me from the lfs. Of the 6 boxes of stuff they ordered 2 boxes did not make the transfer in Louiville. Of course my bumble bee and trokus snails along with my shrimp won't show till tomorrow now. Aarrgg.

May want to be careful with E.mendicaria aka bumble bee in a reef tank. They’ll feed on your useful sand fauna, worms and have been known to kill other snails, soft/lps corals and clams when hungry. They’re effectively ‘whelks’ just not as specialized as some.

 

[Ocean Lotion]

May want to be careful with E.mendicaria aka bumble bee in a reef tank. They’ll feed on your useful sand fauna, worms and have been known to kill other snails, soft/lps corals and clams when hungry. They’re effectively ‘whelks’ just not as specialized as some.

Thanks for the word of warning. I am going to experiment with putting them near small vermetid snails to see if the bumble bees eat them. I know I didn't have an issue with overpopulation of vermetids when I had bumble bee snails. If I learn something I will pass it on.

 

[EmdeReef]

Thanks for the word of warning. I am going to experiment with putting them near small vermetid snails to see if the bumble bees eat them. I know I didn't have an issue with overpopulation of vermetids when I had bumble bee snails. If I learn something I will pass it on.

Good luck, hope it works, hate vermetids bbees gave me a headache with clams a few years back, tough to catch too...

As for asterina, I wish I could borrow a harlequin My bi-color angel seems to be killing them for fun, not fast enough though. Never seen it before but it will literally nip and even hold them in its mouth then drop and keep nipping as they fall in the tank...