are starfish clam safe?

[The Reefer91]

are any sandsifting starfish safe with clams? i heard they are going to eat the mantles.

 

[The Reefer91]

bump

 

[davidcalgary29]

My star never bothered my large derasa when they shared the same sandbed, but I've heard that it's still a risk. I have never seen my star attack any of my inverts (incl. 3 urchins), but understand that it may develop an appetite for them at any time. So far so good, though.

 

[whiteshark]

Didn't consider this but i'm planning on adding a crocea clam. Will my red linkia be ok with it? (sorry to hijack your thread like this, but I figure theres no point in posting basically the same question again).

 

[The Reefer91]

i don't mind at all whiteshark. i figure the more people post on this the more answers we'll get. i am tringto find some thing to sift sand other than sand sifter gobys. plus i heard that cucumbers(my original idea) spew bad things when angry

 

[Deadmullet]

just tagging along on finding cool sandsifting creatures

 

[The Reefer91]

every interested tag along(publicity reaons )

 

[Lev F.]

Sand Sifter Starts eat all of the beneficial life in sandbeds and then starve to death. they are not good creatures for reefs. Get some nassarius Snails and Maybe a Fighting Conch.

 

[wetWolger]

what about other starts that could be a hazard to clams? I was thinking of adding a clam and currently have a serpant star. Would this be a problem?

p.s. as for the sand sifter don't do it....I had one in my 120gal, and it ended up starving to death. Despite a 4 to 5in bed and a 120gal it still could not find enough food. They just are not suited for the aquarium.

 

[whiteshark]

Why no goby??? I love mine. He does a wondeful job sifting sand and readily takes frozen foods like mysis, brine and prime reef. I even saw him pecking at a broken peice of nori today!

 

[hahnmeister]

Depends. There are many starfish. Some do eat clams. Linkias and their types eat algae. Its a bit like asking 'do fish eat clams?'...well...some do, some dont.

As far as sand-sifting stars, I agree...they are not a good think to keep. They will strip a sandbed of life as fast as they can. Horseshoe crabs are a better choice even (and they arent good either).

 

[whiteshark]

Seems like we've stumbled upon a good question about the stars and clams. I've seen people who have clams and stars in the same tank, but I don't know for sure if this is safe.

 

[whiteshark]

Correct me if i'm wrong, but isn't it widely accepted that we don't know exactly what linkias eat?

 

[hahnmeister]

I thought they were accepted as algae eaters...could be more than that of course. Isnt that true of everything we keep?

 

[ftnirishfan]

Why do you guys have the same avatar?

 

[whiteshark]

Just happened to have the same one is all. I need 100 posts to put up my own.

 

[cristhiam]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6918043#post6918043 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by whiteshark
Didn't consider this but i'm planning on adding a crocea clam. Will my red linkia be ok with it? (sorry to hijack your thread like this, but I figure theres no point in posting basically the same question again).

linkias are fine blue and red (orange)

 

[The Reefer91]

i might just get a fighting conch and some snails. whiteshark, the reason no goby is i plan on having corals in the sand, and they will spit out sand on them

 

[Mike.B]

so thats what happened to my sand sifting starfish, will I find a his remains when I go through the sand? What tank would be suitable for them if a reef tank isnt?

 

[Im14abeer]

Maybe a species tank. Live rock and sandbed only. No other predators for the microfauna. Sounds pretty boring to me though. I doubt if anyone has done a survey on SSSF range and density.

As for Linkas, any rich grad student out there looking for a thesis? How about "Diet and feeding of the Linka, sp." You'd get to spend a lot of time diving the reef for "research." :0

If you're that rich grad student, need a "research assitant?" I'll work cheap!