Blue Starfish FAQ

seldin

Active member
I just got a blue starfish and was looking for a FAQ or info on him. I was told at the LFS that it is reef compatible. I have 2 damsels, goby, clown, 1 blue clam and a variety of invertebrates.

I have a 55 gallon reef with live sand, live rock and my parms are good. Reef was setup a couple of years ago. I have lots of critters and feed my fish a variety of frozen fish food that I make myself 2-3 times a week and a variety of dry food.

In addition, I have been feeding phyto plankton and rotofers twice a week.

Thanks much,
 
Do you remember the name of the starfish? Its most likely a Linckia starfish. These are fairly difficult to keep but it can be done. Acclimation is a very important part of having success with this species. I have tried to keep them before but still have not been able to myself. It is a omnivore, and should be fed small chunks of shrimp or clam. By the way, it may eat your blue clam I'm sorry to say.

Here's a link:
http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=497+528+568&pcatid=568
 
J,

I have the Linckia starfish. I am not happy. I went to my LFS and they said it was reef safe. I was hoping it was not difficult to care for and definitely did not want it to go after my new clam.

Now, I am not sure what to do. I do provide a lot of different types of food, but am wondering if this will be a lost cause because of it's difficulty to keep.

Thank you for your feedback.

The star looks so pretty.
 
I'm sorry my friend, I was mistaken, they eat detritus and micro-invertebrates. Your clam will be safe, but I'd still like to help to make sure your linckia will be happy in your tank.

How does it look? Any cuts on it? Is it in your tank yet? Whats all in your tank?

Again I'm sorry for saying that
 
J,

Here is what is in my tank:

2 damsels, 1 clown, diamond back goby, cleaner shrimp, fire shrimp, hermit crabs, snails and 3 emerald crabs.

A while back I had a green hair algae problem, even though I had 0 nitrates and 0 phosphates (with salifert test kits).

However, once I increased my cleanup crew, very little hair algae. So tank is sparsley populated with fish and my focus is corals. However, as we discussed I bought a clam a couple of weeks ago and just got the blue star fish.

It does have a slight abrasion on it. I think it was from my tank, I did not see that when I bought it.

I thought it would hang out on my glass. It does that at night. During the day, I do not see it too much. It likes my live rock.


Thanks for your help.
 
Here's a link to wetwebmedia for info on linckia's-good site for everything really.

http://wetwebmedia.com/linckiastars.htm

I'd really watch how the other tank mates interact with the starfish. Not just now, but just try to be on the lookout for anything trying to mess with it. I'm a little concerned with the emerald crabs. They will eventually mess with the starfish. This starfish is just so delicate compared to others, and starfish are fairly delicate to begin with anyways. Just watch for loss of the suction cups on its underside and any kind of bacterial growths.

There are other kinds of starfish that are almost if not just as appealing that are not nearly as hard to keep. To tell you the truth, I have never seen, let alone heard of anyone keeping blue linckia's for any long amount of time. I'm really not sure why they import and sell them still. Good luck and read up on your purchases next time in order to get the most out of your money and your purchase. The guy at the local fish store doesn't know everything either sometimes.
 
J,

After reading more on the blue star, it does not look like I made a wise purchase. At least it won't go after my clam.

Thank you for your input.
 
Here is the FAQ:

Q) Do blue starfish always die?
A) Yes.


While they may be difficult to get a suitable one and have a suitable setup, that comment is hyperbole. I know folks who have kept them long term. I have one, although I only recently added it. :)
 
I have had a blue linkia for over 2 years now. It moves around a lot at night, and grows very slowly (I assume it could grow quicker).

I did a fair amount of research on these and the conclusion I came to is this:

Nobody knows exactly what they eat, but it is reef safe, and you can't supplement their feeding. Based on that, I found this recommendation the most appropriate one I've read:

About 100lbs of live rock in an established reef tank for each linkia.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14746124#post14746124 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by risin
I have had a blue linkia for over 2 years now. It moves around a lot at night, and grows very slowly (I assume it could grow quicker).

I did a fair amount of research on these and the conclusion I came to is this:

Nobody knows exactly what they eat, but it is reef safe, and you can't supplement their feeding. Based on that, I found this recommendation the most appropriate one I've read:

About 100lbs of live rock in an established reef tank for each linkia.

Could you please tell about your setup and live stock. Thanks.
 
I glad this thread came up, I was curious about some of this also. The blue stars are quite stunning. Too bad that they are a challenge to keep.
 
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