asterina on clam

[Paul_PSU]

My huge maxima clam would not open all day yesterday. I was keeping an eye on it and nothing was bothering it or so I thought. when the MH lights went off I kept looking at it with a flashlight and I see an asterina star on its byssal threads just going back and forth. I pulled the clam and took the star out. I put the clam back in and it opened up fully within 5 minutes. I'm not sure it was an ordinary asterina cause it looked identical to a normal one but it had 4 or 5 small red spots on the top of it.

 

[cloakerpoked]

I wonder if he was actually harming the clam, or just agitating it to the point it wouldn't open. They are pretty sensitive about their mantles, and it doesn't take much for them to close up, so maybe he was just wandering around and picked a bad spot. I've never read anything about them cannibalizing clams.

 

[Paul_PSU]

I wasn't sure either way and figured better safe than sorry. I read a couple posts about them munching on the byssal threads. He would not go on the shell of the clam just the byssal and tissue between the shell halves(forget what it is called) I have hermits that crawl on this clam a starry blenny that hangs out on the mantle and it never closes up. I think I can see marks where it was at on the clam also.

 

[cloakerpoked]

I've never seen them in my tank, but I guess I'll have to keep an eye out for them now.