Banded Brittle Star

wood0691 · 11/03/2011, 01:25 PM

ive picked up a nice size chunck of LR and it has about 6 Brittle stars in it. are they ok to have in the tank? they stay hidden for the most part, the most i see is a couple of legs sticking out of the rock. ive got a pic of one but dont have it loaded to photobucket yet.

cloak · 11/03/2011, 01:32 PM

No worries.

wood0691 · 11/03/2011, 01:59 PM

here is the brittle star

also found this one but cant find any ID on this tho. its the little red/pink dot in the middle

mgargiullo · 11/03/2011, 03:01 PM

I've got dozens of those brittle stars. They're awesome. The second pic is also a starfish. I got a Christmas tree feather duster rock with two of them as hitchhikers... Ni asked about them and was told they're fine.

GuySmily · 11/03/2011, 03:23 PM

I believe the star in the second pic is an Asterina. Mine is only blue - your two-tone guy is pretty cool looking.

Mine disappears for weeks at a time - my gf gets scared that he got eaten or something - but it always shows back up eventually.

All the asterina stars I see at LFS's are really tiny, with odd #s of legs and asymmetrical. Yours is like mine - symmetrical, 5 legs. (or is yours 6?)

wood0691 · 11/03/2011, 03:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GuySmily

I believe the star in the second pic is an Asterina. Mine is only blue - your two-tone guy is pretty cool looking.

Mine disappears for weeks at a time - my gf gets scared that he got eaten or something - but it always shows back up eventually.

All the asterina stars I see at LFS's are really tiny, with odd #s of legs and asymmetrical. Yours is like mine - symmetrical, 5 legs. (or is yours 6?)

its hard to tell if its 5 or 6 legs, i cant now for sure.
i found a green one like the 2 tone one but i cant get a pic of it cause its surounded by green on the rock, its kinda incogneato.

VoiceInTheDeser · 11/03/2011, 04:39 PM

I've got about a half dozen of those guys in a single piece of rock. I've never seen the actual bodies emerge from the rock, but you will see them grab at food when you drop in mysis or something meaty. Never had an issue with them and one of them is about 5 inches across now.

11/03/2011, 01:25 PM	#1
wood0691 Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Birmingham Alabama Posts: 329	Banded Brittle Star ive picked up a nice size chunck of LR and it has about 6 Brittle stars in it. are they ok to have in the tank? they stay hidden for the most part, the most i see is a couple of legs sticking out of the rock. ive got a pic of one but dont have it loaded to photobucket yet.

11/03/2011, 03:01 PM	#4
mgargiullo Registered Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: Hightstown. NJ Posts: 229	I've got dozens of those brittle stars. They're awesome. The second pic is also a starfish. I got a Christmas tree feather duster rock with two of them as hitchhikers... Ni asked about them and was told they're fine. __________________ People think I'm crazy when I tell them I'm saving my money to buy Rocks and Sand. Current Tank Info: 112g mixed reef, 40g Breeder, 16g Nuvo and 8g Nuvo,

11/03/2011, 01:32 PM	#2
cloak Moved On Join Date: Jul 2000 Location: Stockton, CA Posts: 14,854	No worries.

11/03/2011, 01:59 PM	#3
wood0691 Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Birmingham Alabama Posts: 329	here is the brittle star also found this one but cant find any ID on this tho. its the little red/pink dot in the middle

11/03/2011, 03:23 PM	#5
GuySmily Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: El Dorado Hills Posts: 181	I believe the star in the second pic is an Asterina. Mine is only blue - your two-tone guy is pretty cool looking. Mine disappears for weeks at a time - my gf gets scared that he got eaten or something - but it always shows back up eventually. All the asterina stars I see at LFS's are really tiny, with odd #s of legs and asymmetrical. Yours is like mine - symmetrical, 5 legs. (or is yours 6?)

11/03/2011, 04:39 PM	#7
VoiceInTheDeser Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Mesa, AZ Posts: 286	I've got about a half dozen of those guys in a single piece of rock. I've never seen the actual bodies emerge from the rock, but you will see them grab at food when you drop in mysis or something meaty. Never had an issue with them and one of them is about 5 inches across now.