Safe tankmate for a baby Brittle Starfish

[purgatori27]

I've had a 20 gallon long tank cycled for a while now. I've been having a hard time trying to decide what I want in there. A few days ago, the decision was narrowed down for me. I was checking out the tank, and all it's little critters (3 different types of little Feather Dusters, Amphipods, Copepods, Nassarius Snails, Nerites, and Cerith Snails). I noticed these three little dark appendages sticking out of a little hole in the rock. At first they looked like little bristleworms, but I quickly realized they were too skinny and were Brownish-red and white striped. I did a little research, and I believe it's a Baby Brittle Starfish (or a Micro, whatever you wanna call it). I placed a shrimp pellet near the rock with a pair of tweezers. The arms took about a half second to start to grab it. I saw a total of 4 arms. That is so awesome! I love it when I find a cool hitchhiker, since most freebies are pests .

Ok, Ok...here's where you guys come in.

I need some ideas as to what type of tankmates I can get that will live in harmony with this guy. And to narrow it down further...whatever I choose, I want to breed. I was interested in Coral Banded Shrimp or Cleaner Shrimp (I love inverts), but my family would love to get a pair of fish that were hardy, gentle, and easy to breed.

Also, any ideas of anything with color I could add such as corals or the like. I don't want anemones and I imagine sponges might be out of the question. Some of you guys and gals have been doing this saltwater thing a long time, so I welcome any ideas. I've had freshwater tanks and inverts for over 20 years, but I'm very new to saltwater tanks. Luckily, I'm not an idiot, so I can learn fairly quickly and I try to research as much as possible. I'm sure my family would disagree with that last part! Thanks in advance.

Here's what I'm working with:

 

[Al]

I've found that most animals won't bother the micro brittle stars. For a 20 gallon tank, you might try some gobies - the neons will spawn in a tank. You'll find that shrimp can be on the destructive side. The coral banded will get too large and agressive for a 20, the cleaners should be ok - they do better in pairs if that's what you're going to get. The peppermints - well, something that will eat aptasia will eat a lot of other polyps. You'll probably get some small white or yellow sponges growing from your live rock once your tank has settled down some.

 

[purgatori27]

I think I've decided on a trio of Scarlet Cleaner shrimp. They are hermaphroditic, so it shouldn't be too hard to form a mating pair!

I was hoping I could keep a Blue Damsel in there as well (don't know what kind yet, but a cheap variety). I have plenty of amphipods that I hope he will find tasty.

There is something growing from my rocks that is yellow, and I wondered if it was a sponge or something. I am a novice to saltwater, so I have no clue what it could be. It grew quickly at first, then grew much more slowly. It doesn't appear to move. I'll try to post a pic. Maybe someone can help me identify it.

 

[Bongo Shrimp]

I'm pretty sure that it is just a yellow sponge.

 

[purgatori27]

To me, that's a big deal! I've never seen a real live sponge before. I think they are pretty cool. They are on several rocks now. Will Cleaner shrimp such as Peppermint or Scarlet Cleaner shrimp eat them?

 

[Elysia]

A cleaner shrimp shouldn't bother it.
But I am not sure if it is a sponge or a tunicate (a sesile animal whose larva have a proto-vertebrate.) One of the easiest ways to tell one from the other is to take your tweezers and gently touch the siphon (little spout area.) If it retracts and/or closes, it is most likely a tunicate (some colonial sponges can do this as well, which is why this is just a general guideline.) If the animal doesn't move at all, it is likely a sponge. Either way, your shrimp are unlikely to bother it.
I would agree with Al, gobies are a good choice for nice, small fish that may be willing to breed. I like the cleaners, and there are a lot of other nice ones within that same genus.

 

[purgatori27]

Update: Pretty sure those yellow things are not an animal. A few days ago, I used my hemostats to gently brush it to see what the texture was like. It is kind of soft and flexible, but pops right back up when you touch it. Doesn't move on it's own, and doesn't grow very big.

I read up on the Cleaner Shrimp (Lysmata amboinensis), and decided to get a few. I also picked up a Blue Damsel (female). I wasn't sure about the fish decision, and if she doesn't work out I'll give her to my brother for his 180 gallon tank that only has one small Clownfish and a large Brittle Star.

Thank you all for your input. I do appreciate the help.

 

[Elysia]

Well, here are some photos of tunicates if you want to see some.

http://www.starfish.ch/c-invertebrates/chordata.html

 

[purgatori27]

Wow! Thanks Elysia. Those are awesome. Definitely not what I have in my tank, but they are pretty cool anyway!

 

[purgatori27]

Here's something interesting that I just witnessed for the first time. You guys probably already know this about Cleaner Shrimp...but I'm a newbie to saltwater, so this is all very fascinating to me!

I have mentioned in another thread that my Nassarius vibex snails were laying eggs all over the glass. At first I didn't want to clean my front glass, because I didn't want to disturb the eggs. Then after a while, biofilm etc builds up, and it makes it difficult to see into your beautiful tank or take pictures with all those eggs everywhere. After seeing that the snails lay eggs non stop, I decided enough is enough and cleaned the front glass only, leaving the other 3 panes alone.

Yesterday, I was removing a Bristleworm and the shrimp tried to swim over, I guess to clean my hand. I didn't want it on me, so I pulled my hand out of the tank. The shrimp stood on the front glass and noticed the eggs. He began to grab the eggs with both claws, and pull with all it's might to remove the eggs. It was pulling so hard, that when the eggs gave way, the shrimp flew backwards through the water. Very funny to watch!

It would pull a dozen or so egg sacs off the glass, then go back to it's favorite corner. I then noticed there were no eggs in the shrimp's corner. So, they love Nassarius eggs, and hopefully I just need to get one or two more shrimp and they will eliminate all the eggs on the front glass. There are plenty of places the snails can get to and lay eggs, where the shrimp is too large to fit. I'm just glad I don't have to do ALL the work around here any more!