Orange Linkia Starfish

[LinkaStarr]

So I named my Linkia Starfish "Iron Star" ️ many who have tried to keep these starfish have failed, or their starfish have failed them.

I guess I've just gotten lucky and I mean extremely lucky or maybe they are a bit more simple than we give them credit for.

My tank is a reef tank 95 gallons and 130lbs of live rock. H T-5's and all soft corals. I have coralline algae. My tank has been running for 6 years prior to my Linkia's arrival.

First I will admit that when I decided that I wanted one it was a last min decision due to the fish store informing me he was reef safe!!! I have loved starfish since I was a little girl and was disappointed to learn most starfish are not reef safe.

So I bought this guy brought him home and did what most would consider unthinkable!!! I did a light bag assimilation and then dropped him right into my tank...

A day later after reading everything online I was thinking crap he's totally gonna die. Well that was $30 down the drain!

To make things worse a fish I bought with him had some parasite and died. Then another fish caught the same bug so because my hospital tank wasn't reset up after my recent move I had no choice but to treat my entire tank with kanamycin sulfate. So I was like well if he had a chance before he surely doesn't now!!!

Low and behold he made it! He lived through it all!

He was very active from the start I picked him from the fish store because he was so lively! When I brought him home that didn't change either! He moves all day long the slinks to the top of the glass lets go free falls on to the rocks and then makes his way back up again. The first time I saw this I thought he died!!!

He also seems to catch food like flakes when I'm feeding my fish.

None the less he's living on strong my 6 armed Linkia is an Iron Star!

I just wanted to share my starfish victory because I find that google seems to show nothing but people with cries for help and negative story's about keeping these outstanding creatures!!!

 

[Eienna]

That's cool.

 

[.AcroKiller.]

I would love to have one but I tried a blue one and it died

 

[spspirate]

What a colorful addition!

 

[LinkaStarr]

I have heard that the blue tend to be more sensitive. However I haven't tried to keep a blue one. I might get one and see if I have similar results.

 

[Tahoe61]

How long have you had the starfish? The age of your tank was probably a big contributor to your success as well as all the LR.

 

[_Alex_]

Very cool! We have had a blue one close to 3 years now. And the guy before us had him for 4. Not sure what I'm doing but he seems to be doing well!! Lol


-Alex-

 

[evolved]

How long have you had the starfish? The age of your tank was probably a big contributor to your success as well as all the LR.

This.

But what helps even more, is this orange "Linckia" isn't a Linckia species at all, but rather an Echinaster species.

Saltwater Aquarium Inverts for Marine Reef Aquariums: Orange Sea Star

 

[NanaReefer]

How long have you had your Super Star

 

[TarHeelReefer22]

I have had mine since it was the size of a dime and hitched in on some of LR about seven months ago. Mines name is Patrick I know cliche but it just stuck. He even survived my 350+ mile move to the coast!!

 

[LinkaStarr]

He's a year and some change.

 

[TarHeelReefer22]

So cool he is sporting the six arm look

 

[SeahorseKeeper]

Great success story!! Thank you for sharing!

 

[TarHeelReefer22]

another shot of mine update pic of yours?

question was there an injury involved with the sixth leg or did he just decide it would look cooler haha?

 

[Aqua fire/medic]

Ha ... Love these stars! I had one for about 8 months but it didn't make it through my upgrade process . I would love to try a blue or maybe even a purple in the future but I know success rates are very low .

 

[oceanparadise1]

I just got one a week ago. Hopefully I have your luck!

 

[LinkaStarr]

Actually they can come 6 legs or 5! I figured the 6 legs contributes to my luck... Maybe not lol! There is so little known about these stars that their identification is still a bit blurry. None the less I enjoy his uniqueness!!

He loves this rock

 

[evolved]

question was there an injury involved with the sixth leg or did he just decide it would look cooler haha?

6 arms is not at all uncommon for the Echinaster genus.

 

[LinkaStarr]

Actually there isn't anyway way for you to know that it is or isn't the Echinaster. After reading your comments I looked into this further as I was very aware that the species can be mislabeled and is commonly done so. There are a couple things that make me hesitant to think that mine is a Echinaster. First he's larger than the stated lengths of the Echinaster by almost an inch he's 3.5" and studies show the Echinaster is usually 2.5-2.8" fully grown. Another identification that doesn't fully sit well is the Echinaster are said to usually have 5 legs and its rarer for them to have 6 or 7, unlike its cousin the Linkia. Another identification issue is that the Echinaster is said to eat parts of the reef and can be harmful to corals. I've not found that to be the case with this particular star. They are very similar but part of the infrastructure is a bit more textured on the top of the Echinaster and mine seems to appear to be a lot smoother. I could be completely wrong however truth be told we both can only speculate. I'm not a marine biologist I can only research online and at the library and consult with other hobbiest.

 

[evolved]

Actually there isn't anyway way for you to know that it is or isn't the Echinaster. After reading your comments I looked into this further as I was very aware that the species can be mislabeled and is commonly done so.

True, but if you search long enough you'll find nearly all of the orange "linckia" aren't a Linckia species at all.

First he's larger than the stated lengths of the Echinaster by almost an inch he's 3.5" and studies show the Echinaster is usually 2.5-2.8" fully grown.

There are many factors in size, and different species of Echinaster reach different sizes at maturity. It's a very large genus with many species.

Another identification that doesn't fully sit well is the Echinaster are said to usually have 5 legs and its rarer for them to have 6 or 7, unlike its cousin the Linkia.

That's simply untrue. It's very much species dependent. Some Linckia species almost exclusively have 5 arms, yet other Linckia species do regularly have more. The same goes for the Echinaster genus.
Even the Live Aquaria link I shared above states: "Some Echinaster Sea Stars have 6 arms."

Another identification issue is that the Echinaster is said to eat parts of the reef and can be harmful to corals.

Some species of Echinaster, yes. But again, it is a very large genus with a variety of species; this is untrue for all.

They are very similar but part of the infrastructure is a bit more textured on the top of the Echinaster and mine seems to appear to be a lot smoother.

There are some Echinaster species with are relatively smooth, too.

Take a look at this page (and even related info on WWM, while you're there): SeaStarIDFAQs