Starfish Update!

[livinlifeinBKK]

Honestly, no I haven't ... yet.
I am the type of person that tried to do all the studying & research that I can before I jump into things. And although I love the look of starfish, I could never bring myself to buying one, knowing that I wouldn't be able to keep it alive.
The ones I have now, we're all hitchhikers, so it wasn't as bad. Amazing enough, all of the tunicates, feather dusters, barnacles and things that were 'supposed' to die off, is still alive, so something has to be keeping it all alive. Maybe the actual 'live' ocean rock may hold some kind of key in keeping them alive.
I have been keeping an eye on these threads with the hopes of catching some information that would help me succeed in keeping one of the other stars happy & healthy.

The live ocean rock would sustain some other star species as long as the biofilm was there to feed it...if your tank is big enough the biofilm will have time to regrow and replenish the stars food source... personally I'm designing an experiment in an effort to formulate an alternative food source for starfish species such as Fromias and Linckias which if successful would enable hobbyists to keep stars in smaller tanks. There's been a lot of research I've put into studying starfish and biofilm biology and I'm hoping it will pay off with at least partial success in my experiment I'm about to begin.

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

I know. For starfish exposed to tidal zones it’s true but these starfish are in captivity not tidal zones and adapted to the sudden changes. I’m saying linckia in particular who don’t live in tidal zones are very sensitive to changes and exposing them to air is not good and it stresses them out and can lead to it. And I shouldn’t of posted it the way I did and it was only because I heard one person say it right before lol.

Actually, pretty much every Linckia species in the hobby (L. multifora & L. laevigata [genetically shown to be the same species, L. mulifora], L. columbiae, and L. guildingii) are all found in the intertidal zones as well as the subtidal. They are all fine to be exposed to air for some time (likely considerably longer than one would think), and, in fact, some people that keep or have kept starfish have reported them climbing up the glass and out of the water on occasion. As mentioned the important thing is just that they don't dry out.

Found this quote from 2018:

Nah. They can be exposed to air. The whole "starfish can't ever be out of the water" bit is a hobby myth.

 

[MaxTremors]

Actually, pretty much every Linckia species in the hobby (L. multifora & L. laevigata [genetically shown to be the same species, L. mulifora], L. columbiae, and L. guildingii) are all found in the intertidal zones as well as the subtidal. They are all fine to be exposed to air for some time (likely considerably longer than one would think), and, in fact, some people that keep or have kept starfish have reported them climbing up the glass and out of the water on occasion. As mentioned the important thing is just that they don't dry out.

Found this quote from 2018:

Yes. There are so many little bits of misinformation in this hobby that just get repeated and repeated until people just take them as fact. Same thing with popping Valonia or disturbing an Aiptasia, or exposing a puffer to air (there is some truth to this one, you don’t want them to puff up out of water, but even that isn’t a death sentence). Briefly exposing a sea star to air will not harm or kill it.

I know. For starfish exposed to tidal zones it’s true but these starfish are in captivity not tidal zones and adapted to the sudden changes. I’m saying linckia in particular who don’t live in tidal zones are very sensitive to changes and exposing them to air is not good and it stresses them out and can lead to it. And I shouldn’t of posted it the way I did and it was only because I heard one person say it right before lol.

This is just not true. A starfish doesn’t suddenly develop an intolerance to being exposed to air because it’s in captivity. I wouldn’t recommend leaving a starfish out of water for an extended period of time, and when transferring them you should get them back in water ASAP, but a few seconds out of water is harmless.

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

Thats something I was already aware of and am glad about since I'm gonna be having to weigh my stars for the study

 

[sky414]

Yesterday was officially one month of having my starfish, who is by far my favorite tank member! I also happened to find the 5th person on the internet to have a West African Biscuit Starfish. And I’m currently in contact with several marine biologists and there’s only about one person in the entire world who exclusively studies and classifies starfish/echinoderms and I emailed them it’s not only for the article I’m writing but also because I have a few personal questions I want answered that the internet can’t answer so I hope they reply. I can tell you public aquariums are one of the worst places to ask questions. I got the generic reply of, “Sorry we get too many requests to accommodate you”. One thing I notice that I want to share was after my water changes (despite heating the water and matching the salinity) and sometimes when he’s on the sand I notice my starfish flexing see my photo below. And to quote a marine biologist who studies invertebrates but focuses on worms this may be the reason why: “Could be flexing due to a change in the oxygen content of the water. In the wild there tends to be deoxygenation that may happen in a layer near the bottom, so if they flex it lifts bits up into the more oxygenated water higher up.” and it makes so much sense. I hope it works out and I will keep everyone updated and if it doesn’t get published I still learned a lot/can share it.

Hey! what do you feed your biscuit star, if anything? Mine arrives tomorrow. I am super stoked and would like to know about food and all of your dos and don'ts. Thanks!