lost star

[Frogspawn]

lol this is funny realy. i went up to that store today and i came home and my star fish has ran away. well i think he did anyway. i search that whole tank and i cant find him any where. hes always been on my frount glass and now hes gone. do they do this some time and has any one else had this problem? what sould i do? brake every thing down to find him?
i took a water sample up to that blueribbonkoi store and he said my water was great. i dont understand but ok i am not oing to argue with the man lol. any way what should i do about the star?

 

[MT79]

Do you know what kind of star it was?

 

[Frogspawn]

i was not there when she bought it. it kinda looked like a linka. but its wasnt blue like a linka is. its was a green blue, it had the same texture as a linka though. i am looking for him now and i still dont see him. i am getting realy scared now. if i dont see him by mid day tomarrow i am going to remove some LR and check for him.

here it is 536 in the moring couldnt sleep. got up and still no star fish. is it possible for him to craw out of the tank?
i seen he was hanging out around the top alot. he kinda never left the top since i bought him. i driped aclamated him. for over 2 hrs. mabey even 3hr. he seemed happy when i put him in there. i gave him a peice of dryed seaweed and then the other day he was pooping alot. lol but over all he seems fine. yesterday i got a clown fish and again i drip aclamated him for 2hrs. a slow drip. he seems to be fine. i dont think he sleep all night. he kinda swims up and down in one spot. mabey he not use to the tank yet. he hasnt eat yet either. but i will try this moring when i get up for school
any ideas whats going on?
i will check water stats when i get back from school asap and post. but i think they will be fine. i dont smell anything strong like ammo. has a weird smell ammo does lol
check back later

 

[tecwzrd]

Tanks too new for any Sea Stars at this point even with "perfect" parameters IMO. Sea Stars are very intolerant of any swings in ph/temp/sg and need a mature tank (at least 6 months IMO) and very slow drip acclimations to adjust to the main tanks parameters.

If it was Linckia spp and you didn't acclimate it long enough or exposed it to air then it could be or is in the process of dieing. Unlike Brittle or Serpent Sea Stars they don't typically hide under rocks and usually are more in the open.

I would try to find it ASAP and remove if it is dead since it will foul your tank.

If it's still alive make sure any adjustments to ph/sg/temp are done very slowly over a weeks time if needed.

 

[Frogspawn]

i found him. not a good outcome my first lost. my girlfriend was very upset. but i had to move everything in the tank just to find him. now i cant get it back to the way it was. very stressfull but the clown is eating and i guess thats a good sign right? i am a little concerned that he dont swim around much. he swims up and down the side of the fish tank. i guess he thinks he can get out lol. but i hope he will be ok.

 

[tecwzrd]

Sorry for your loss.

Does your girlfriend know a lot about SW tanks and acclimation? If not I wouldn't let her add anymore stock while you're not there.

Did you retest for nh3/no2/no3?

Your Clown's behavior is very normal and nothing to worry about.

 

[roka64]

Is this the same gf that bought it for you as a surprise? I thought you were going to take it back...?

 

[Frogspawn]

yea i retested and every thing still coming up 0ppms PH on the other hand is not looking any better its still 7.8 . so i hope it will come up more with age. what could i do to find out what is causing this to stay so low? and what if u have to much air in your tank? the refuge has a return on it that lets the water fall into the tank and that puts so many bubbles in the tank.

and yea she added it to the tank. she use to help me with my FO tank and she knew it had o be driped in and though she was doing things right. i told her not to add anthing more to te tank with out me here. and i think i should have keep my mouth shut on that one lol. we could not take it back.

 

[roka64]

Sometimes it can take a few months for the tank to settle. If your pH is stable, you are good to go. You can probably raise it some by adding more surface agitation.

 

[Frogspawn]

lol this tank has so much surface agitation its not funny. i have a maxijet600 pointed at the top and the refuge return is insane air entering the tank. looks like i have a airstone in there. but u say if the tank is stable at 7.8 it will be fine for fish?
so nemo will be ok?

 

[roka64]

Mine stayed that way for months, until I removed the lid and my fish were fine. I believe you just finished your cycle, so the tank should start to level out. For now, you are good, give it another month or two and see what kind of readings you get.

 

[Frogspawn]

k can do. thnaks again

 

[melosu58]

As Micah asked, Was the star exposed to air when the LFS bagged it or when you added it to the tank? If it was then that is the reason it died. They must never be exposed to air.