ID Please Starfish

[coil1002]

Is this a bad one to have in a reef ?

 

[NaH2O]

That is an Asterina star, and it is debateable as to whether or not it is "safe". IMO, unless you see it munching on a coral (and I don't mean walking across it...remove from coral and see damage), they are harmless.

Asterina sea stars have been accused, unfairly at times, for preying on coral tissue. While some individuals appear to eat some desirable reef invertebrates, the problem may be a simple matter of an opportunistic predator adapting to change in the available, preferred foods (worms, algae).

From the article: Starfish: Consideration for the Common (and Commonly Misunderstood) Varieties by Anthony Calfo

 

[coil1002]

That is an Asterina star, and it is debateable as to whether or not it is "safe". IMO, unless you see it munching on a coral (and I don't mean walking across it...remove from coral and see damage), they are harmless.



From the article: Starfish: Consideration for the Common (and Commonly Misunderstood) Varieties by Anthony Calfo

Thats a good article thanks. Garf.org lists them as an sps eater but not a lot of info on them past that

 

[NaH2O]

Yeah, and a lot of the controversy stems from that site/article. Here is another article with Rob Toonen:

Coral Eating Starfish

 

[Gimpster]

The ones I have are tan with blue/green markings and they pretty much eat Canyo, Coraline, Diatons, and any other non filimus crap is in my tank. Never touch my polyps which some of these starts are reported to do. All I know is since i stoped trying to kill them off, I have not had to scrap coraline off my tank sides in over a year. Not even the back wall. My rocks are covered, and they eat enough to for there always to more rock to cover which apparently the coraline perfers over glass and plastic. Don't know about yous but mine I seen to be usefull.