Starfish arm

[Jennydinh143]

I just got this red throny starfish yesterday for my 20 gallon cube. temperature acclimated for 15 mins then drip accumulated for an hour. And i woke up to see this! Not sure how it happened!! Some piece of his inside is on the rock so my guess is that he tried to walk on the sand bed pass the small space between the rock and got his arm broken off but im not sure. Will he be okay? Ignore the shrimp i was trying to feed him but he didn't eat it.

 

[John08007]

Gezzz, you gotta make your tank a little safer in the future. Jk, I believe he will be ok, think they typically grow back over time.

 

[Jennydinh143]

Gezzz, you gotta make your tank a little safer in the future. Jk, I believe he will be ok, think they typically grow back over time.

Should i move the rocks closer to the side of the tank so he cant try to go thru it?

 

[John08007]

I wouldn't worry about it.

 

[Pistondog]

I cut off a leg a week for my harlequin shrimp. The starfish survive the leg-ectomy. Must also happen a lot in the wild. Should be fine

 

[Spieg]

Usually if part of a leg comes off, they will regrow the tip over time. If they lose the entire leg it probably won't regrow. Either way they can live a long life. I've had a 4 legged sand sifting star for 5 years now (I call him "quatro"). Sadly, I chopped it off with a gravel vac when it was buried under the sand (now I always make sure I find both sand sifting stars before I start vacuuming the sand bed).

 

[daybreaksky]

hope he recovers but this is not uncommon for them to melt in front of your eyes. the first time it happened to me I was pretty upset. Unfortunately many star fish are not hardy.



The Red Thorny Sea Star requires a large aquarium with ample supplies of live rock. A small specimen will eat algae. As it grows older, however, it is not reef compatible, as it will eat soft corals, sponges, tubeworms, clams, starfish, and other invertebrates. It should not be housed with puffers.

The Red Thorny Sea Star is very intolerant of sudden changes in oxygen levels, salinity and pH of the water, and cannot tolerate copper-based medications. The drip acclimation method is highly recommended for all Sea Stars due to their intolerability to changes in water chemistry. It should never be exposed to air while handling.

 

[daybreaksky]

I had a red Formia, lasted about 48 hours. Some others like brittle stars, chocolate star, sand sifting star are much hardier

Many starfish have a tendency to begin to dissolve when they die. Most people who have experienced this in their tank describe it as looking like the sea star is dissolving. This is a common thing with Fromia also and is a sign that you should quarantine your star.

 

[Jennydinh143]

I also have a wavemaker in my tank. Is there a possibility he coulda got an arm caught in there

 

[daybreaksky]

I would qt if you can

Starfish melting slowly!!! Help!!!

My starfish is melting slowly. I believe it is a bacterial infection on the tips! Will vibrance be helpful?

www.reef2reef.com

 

[vetteguy53081]

As long as water quality is good and they have a food source, it will repair itself

 

[j.falk]

When they start melting like that...they usually don't last much longer.

I'd remove it from the tank before it completely melts and pollutes the water.