Ok so I got my tank a couple months ago and i just got to the end of my cycle a couple weeks ago I put in a cleaner shrimp, chocolate chip starfish and 3 turbo snails. I was told that I dont have to worry about feeding the starfish so I havent bothered to by any frozen food. When I got the starfish I drip acclimated him for 45 minutes and my water parameters are almost perfect. But lately he hasnt been moving and he puts all of his arms/legs up into the air and his stomach comes out of his body. He looks terrible and I dont know if I should remove him... Any advice??
Sick Chocolate Chip Starfish?
- Thread starter Nate0712
- Start date
Smitty
Reef pro
Welcome to the site...glad to have you aboard. Sorry to hear about your starfish, but two things will definitely kill them, nitrates and starvation. Try to feed him with some meaty foods, as well as your shrimp, because your tank is still very new, and there isn't enough natural food in there for them to eat. Keep an eye on him, because if he starts to die, pull him out your tank so he doesn't mess up your water.
marcah
Reef enthusiast
howdy and welcome to the site.. :D
+1 smitty
+1 smitty
marcah
Reef enthusiast
here so you can read up and see how the starfish is..
Saltwater Aquarium Inverts for Marine Reef Aquariums: Chocolate Chip Sea Star, Protoreaster sp.
Saltwater Aquarium Inverts for Marine Reef Aquariums: Chocolate Chip Sea Star, Protoreaster sp.
Bifferwine
I am a girl
They won't live off of algae alone. They are carnivores. They are also not reef safe, so if you plan on adding corals down the road, the chocolate chip star will have to go. The chocolate chip star really needs some meat (as does the shrimp) as Smitty said.
Nimboli12
Reefee
I just joined a few minutes ago. My choc chip star is the only marine life that is doing extremely well. We call him "the brat" because Ive seen him try to consume my little red star fish. I couldn't find one of my Heniochus' so I took a chance , picked up "the brat" & there was my heniochus being consumed. Ived been told that Choc chip stars only eat what they find dead in the tank, but I also heard that when small fish are sleeping maybe next to a wall the star can creep up and nab them. If the CCS is approx 2 " they can be kind of powerful. Once I saw my "brat" on the tanks back wall holding my Blue Tangs tail in its grip. I quickly moved it. My Choc Chip star is now by himself in a 5 fal tank with rock. They are very beautiful but I read that they can grow to 15" Anyway Nate,my CCS started doing well when I put a piece of raw shrimp under him. Buy some frozen shrimp from the the meat dept of your grocer, cut a little piece & put it under him on the floor of your tank. Hope this helps. Sandy
Ours started doing the same, had his legs lifted up and pooched up in the middle. He stayed in the same general area for 4 days, moving but not much at all. I was suspecting that he might be starving as the sand on that side of the tank was extremely clean. Before I read this thread we moved him to the other side. He flatend back out for a few minutes, pulled up his legs again for about 15 min, then went flat again. We put some shrimp in the tank. Hope this is what it was. He's so cool to look at and we really enjoy him, I would hate to see anything happen.
