Harlequin shrimp question

[BgFish]

Hello fellow reefers. I have a few asterina starts in my main tank. I’m considering getting a harlequin shrimp but I also have one large serpent star.
My question is will the harlequin go after the serpent star? Its pretty large. Had it for many years.

I do have another tank I’ve been throwing all asterina I’ve found for last few years and I have a ton in there so I could feed the harlequin once it gets all the asterina in the main tank, as well as I can trap the harlequin once it’s job is complete.

anyone ever had one eat or damage a serpent star?

 

[joseserrano]

Yes. It will also eat it.

 

[BgFish]

Bummer. Thanks Jose. Guess I’ll be catching the serpent lol

second question- can the serpent go into another tank with another large serpent? One is the brown kind and One is the bright orange kind. The other tank is 100gal, lots of rock-

 

[ivan]

I can rent you my pair they will clean out your tank in no time 😂

 

[drexel]

Asterinas are not actually asterinas (although they do belong to the family asterinidae) they are aquilonastra. They are herbivores and do a great job at cleaning up. There are a few rogue species of actual asterina that make their way into our tanks, but those a pretty rare. Aquilonastra do multiply and their numbers do increase rapidly, but only because they have plenty of food. These guys are great at keeping algae (and coralline) at bay. We've been looking at the species the wrong way for a long time and we shouldn't consider them a pest, but I understand why people look at them differently.

 

[jessesoto33]

Asterinas are not actually asterinas (although they do belong to the family asterinidae) they are aquilonastra. They are herbivores and do a great job at cleaning up. There are a few rogue species of actual asterina that make their way into our tanks, but those a pretty rare. Aquilonastra do multiply and their numbers do increase rapidly, but only because they have plenty of food. These guys are great at keeping algae (and coralline) at bay. We've been looking at the species the wrong way for a long time and we shouldn't consider them a pest, but I understand why people look at them differently.

Thanks for that info, I always killed them thinking they would eat coral. But to know that they are beneficial is new to me. But If I find a real Asterinas how would I know the difference?


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[drexel]

Thanks for that info, I always killed them thinking they would eat coral. But to know that they are beneficial is new to me. But If I find a real Asterinas how would I know the difference?


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True asterinas tend to be a little bigger and they are active eaters of corals. A lot of people see them on zoas and assume they are eating them, when in fact they are probably eating algae that’s built up on the surface of the animal or they were in decline and they moved in to clean up. I’m sure there are cases where asterinas were actually eating coral, but those cases are pretty rare, especially since live rock and wild corals are being imported less.


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[jessesoto33]

True asterinas tend to be a little bigger and they are active eaters of corals. A lot of people see them on zoas and assume they are eating them, when in fact they are probably eating algae that’s built up on the surface of the animal or they were in decline and they moved in to clean up. I’m sure there are cases where asterinas were actually eating coral, but those cases are pretty rare, especially since live rock and wild corals are being imported less.


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Good to know thank you


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[isaacalves]

True asterinas tend to be a little bigger and they are active eaters of corals. A lot of people see them on zoas and assume they are eating them, when in fact they are probably eating algae that’s built up on the surface of the animal or they were in decline and they moved in to clean up. I’m sure there are cases where asterinas were actually eating coral, but those cases are pretty rare, especially since live rock and wild corals are being imported less.


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Great info. Do you have a visual resource you could share? I do have both smaller and larger ones. I do see a variation in skin patterns and other differences.

Thank you!

 

[drexel]

Great info. Do you have a visual resource you could share? I do have both smaller and larger ones. I do see a variation in skin patterns and other differences.

Thank you!

https://museumsvictoria.com.au/media/4094/63_2_oloughlin_rowe.pdf


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