What will eat asterina stars?

Daniel@R2R · Apr 30, 2013

I've got a ton of these, and they're starting to pick on my zoas. Will anything eat them? I need a natural predator to keep them in check.

cultivatedcoral · Apr 30, 2013

Harlequin shrimp

Beach Bum · Apr 30, 2013

Get a pair

dlterry85 · Apr 30, 2013

Harlequin shrimp will eat them. Prob is thats ALL they eat are starfish. when they run out, you will need to rehome or buy some choc chip stars to feed them. HTH

Hey! I know you,lol. From the Richmond club.

TonsOfun · Apr 30, 2013

So I didnt realize they had such an appetite... My tank was getting overrun with asterina stars, my harlequin wiped them out in a day. Looks like I'll be buying a chocolate chip star tonight...

IGROZOAS · Apr 30, 2013

If u buy a few starfish and have a place to house them like your sump. You can alternate and cut legs to feed the shrimp. That way it will regenerate and you won't have to buy so many starfish. Just a suggestion.

mfinn · Apr 30, 2013

I was told that a yellow coris wrasse would eat them.

o2manyfish · Apr 30, 2013

I have a yellow coris and he doesn't have any interest in the Asternia stars. I have two harlequin shrimp who keep territories on opposite sides of the tank, and have kept the population in check for the past several months. When you have hundreds on the glass, you know you have tons more in the rock and corals. My harlequin are lazy they stay on the bottom of the tank and seem to wait for the stars to come to them. But the visible population has dropped drastically since the Harlequin went in back in November.

Dave B

Daniel@R2R · Apr 30, 2013

My problem is that I also have other stars that I don't want eaten (a fromie star and a couple of large bristle stars)...I guess maybe I'd need to get them out of the tank first? I also am concerned about harlequin shrimp starving to death...or do the asterinas reproduce quick enough that it won't matter?

Dave A · Apr 30, 2013

Tagging along. I also have stars I want to keep but too many asterinas.

FugeTown · Jul 29, 2018

o2manyfish said:
I have a yellow coris and he doesn't have any interest in the Asternia stars. I have two harlequin shrimp who keep territories on opposite sides of the tank, and have kept the population in check for the past several months. When you have hundreds on the glass, you know you have tons more in the rock and corals. My harlequin are lazy they stay on the bottom of the tank and seem to wait for the stars to come to them. But the visible population has dropped drastically since the Harlequin went in back in November.

Dave B

I know this is a old forum but did the harlequin shrimp stay alive just from asterisk star fish?