Was this starfish eating my acro?

[NCreefPlay]

One of my acro frags suddenly developed an oval shaped area of tissue loss on one side. To me, it looked like something was munching away at the tissue. To try to prevent further tissue loss, I pulled the frag and dipped in CoralRx. While it was in the dip, this tiny little starfish came off. I searched but couldn't find any pictures that looked similar. Most searches for acro eating starfish returned posts about asterinas and I don't believe this one to be an asterina. Anyone know what this is and whether it was the culprit?

For an idea of scale, the colors in the background are the color variations in a granite countertop.

 

[Piper27]

It wasn't eating your acro. I always called them baby brittle stars but not sure if they are or not. They are everywhere in my system. If they didn't contribute to cleaning I would say they are annoying. Put a picture of the acro showing the damage and it will be easier to help.

 

[jda]

No. It could be snacking on some algae in a dead spot or some debris that was caught in the slime coat. These are very beneficial and very harmless.

I even think that Asternias are harmless... not all agree.

Please post a picture. Acro eating flatworms and fish should be the main suspects.

 

[NCreefPlay]

Thanks for the replies. Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture of the damage before gluing it back down in an orientation that prevents me from getting a picture. I can see the area from an odd angle, so if it gets worse I'll pull the frag again and get a picture. Too bad for the little star. Out of precaution, it didn't go back into the tank.

 

[zsuman101]

Sounds like flatworms to me