Basket Starfish

[WI Reef Lover]

I have had my eye on a starfish, it's called a basket starfish. They have them at www.sealifeflorida.com.

I was wondering if anyone has one of these and what type of experiences they have had with them. I have done some reading and it would seem they are more difficult to keep than most.

I was also concerned about the mention of possible danger to small fish. I have a green clown goby that i'm quite fond of that I would like to keep and am also looking at some blue neon gobies.

Does anyone have one of these and can offer some advise as to whether or not i should even attempt one of these. I actually do want to put him in my reef tank.

Vicky, Wisc.

 

[iamwhatiam52]

Most people will advise you not to get one, but with a little care they seem to do well.
I have tiny gobies in the tank with it and have not lost any.
They are nocturnal and you may never see it open in daylight. They also like a lot of flow and may take up permenant residence on your overflow like mide did.

See this thread. Mine in the picture is still fine.

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=944761

 

[WI Reef Lover]

thanks for the info, i sure would love to give one of these a try as i really do like the unusual and find this star fascinating. definately something to think about. I'm glad to hear that someone has been able to keep one with some success.

Thanks Again

 

[greenbean36191]

You're almost to the point where I think you're safe claiming success, but not quite. Show me the star doing well in 6 months and then I'll agree that you've been successful. If you are, then you would be about the 3rd person I know of that has had any luck with them, hobbyist or academic.

 

[dc]

I've only heard of one myself, and he had one split and for a couple years. Now I can't count the failures I've seen on these boards. They are pretty cool looking but I'd have to pass myself.

 

[matter1331]

Most seem to go about 6-9 months and then start losing feathers. I know of someone who's had their 9 months and it's still going strong. The key I think to keeping them is different sized food. They're filter feeders, but it's not known what size of food they need. They guy I know that has one feeds cyclopeeze, phyto, oyster eggs, zooplankton, and rotifers. It can be done, but they are very difficult to keep.

 

[kmk2307]

The website states it is Astrophyton muricatum. I think they are wonderful animals but I don't know much about them.

iamwhatiam52,
Do you feed yours only cyclopeeze? Where did you get yours?

matter1331,
I think you are confusing crinoids / sea lillies and basket starfish (an ophiuroid).

 

[Ooulophilia]

I found a small one on a coral that came in, and threw in my tank for the hell of it - and it also ended up in the overflow. I can concurr with most everyone elses experience, in that it hung around for about 4 months, and then one day was gone. If you want to try one, I would maybe think about setting up a species only tank, so there is nothing that is going to compete with it for food or steal the food from it.

 

[iamwhatiam52]

Greenbean
"Show me the star doing well in 6 months and then I'll agree that you've been successful."
I don't claim success, just that it is still alive after over a year. As stated in the previous post 4 months ago, I am not sure if it is thriving, or merely surviving.


kmk
"Do you feed yours only cyclopeeze?" The cyclopeez suggestion was for the small one referred to in the post. I feed mine everything meaty, includung cyclopeez, mysids, and pea sized chunks of clam, squid, shrimp and fish. Not sure if it fully consumes the big pieces but it pulls them in.
" Where did you get yours?" Got it at a local store.
"matter1331,I think you are confusing crinoids / sea lillies and basket starfish" Yes I think so too. Don't want to get flamed, so I won't mention that I couldn't resist trying one of those five months ago. Must be dead for about a month according to the experts but you would not know by looking at it.