Awesome FOWLR coming soon!

[NatureFish]

Call me crazy but I actually want asterina stars in my tank! Most people kill them and hate them with a passion as they eat coral but why not put them in a FOWLR set up and call them pets? I have nano that I wanted to set up as a nano SPS tank but when going to my LRS (local reef store) I found these adorable little starfish. I immediately recognized them as "pests" and asked about them. I asked if they sold them etc. they said no, (which I already knew, I was just trying to get them to let me take some) "we try to kill them whenever we see them!" The conversation continued... blah blah....long story short, they said they would keep them around until my next visit so I could take some home. Now I plan to use that nano for asterinas and live rock. They almost look like chocolate chip stars but tiny. Does anyone know what they eat? I'll look it up later but any care advice would be appreciated. Since there won't be anything in there for them to destroy...why not? They are invasive so I will probably be selling them quite often. If anyone is wanting a new FOWLR but doesn't want a huge tank...you should see if a mini asterina tank would be a good option and PM me once I get everything set up and I may sell some to you! Of course they won't be expensive though. I would probably sell 3-5 of them for $3 if even that much. If they are like mandarins or if they are filter feeders (I hope that how you spell it), then I may not be able to do asterinas as this tank is not even set up yet (it won't be mature for a long time and they will starve). However fingers crossed I can feed them with food from the LFS! Thanks for reading my post and if this works out there will be more posts!


NatureFish
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[Sniperhank]

Most of these starfish are harmless. There are many different kinds, but one went postal on a coral and people try to give them a bad name. Either that or they were cleaning up dying coral.
Either way, they eat algae and other gunk in the tank.
People either have it one way or the other, they are all through the tank or they fade away until they are gone.


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[NatureFish]

Most of these starfish are harmless. There are many different kinds, but one went postal on a coral and people try to give them a bad name. Either that or they were cleaning up dying coral.
Either way, they eat algae and other gunk in the tank.
People either have it one way or the other, they are all through the tank or they fade away until they are gone.


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Do they reproduce quickly as the LRS said? I hope so since they probably don't live for very long...


NatureFish
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[Sniperhank]

It depends on the tank. I had some show up just this year but they have now vanished.


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[NatureFish]

Here is the before picture....
And a few hours ago I set it up.

Front is below

And below is the back side
Top view is below these words...




NatureFish
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[NatureFish]

Did I do it right? This is my first SW tank! I know its not advised to start off the hobby with a pico but I'm up for the challenge and I've done a lot of research on this. I'm still going to ask questions though.


NatureFish
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[Sniperhank]

I'm not exactly sure what you mean by 'do it right'. Your tank is the jug? How are you going to get a powerhead in there for water movement for oxygenation?

 

[NatureFish]

I'm not exactly sure what you mean by 'do it right'. Your tank is the jug? How are you going to get a powerhead in there for water movement for oxygenation?

I'm going to put an airstone in there. I figured I didn't need to run it until I put the inhabitants in there. By do it right I meant the depth of the sand bed


NatureFish
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[lgdav]

Hey... I am a newbie myself and, from my research, I understand that airstones are NOT recommended for saltwater tanks. These are the reasons I found:

1- they do not provide the needed oxygenation in a tank.
2- they cause the pH to be constantly unbalanced.
3- they cause a lot of salt to form at at the surface where it bubbles. This could throw off your salinity.
4. They clog up easily. Therefore, they shouldn't be depended on as a major aeration system.

My suggestion is this: Convert this tank into a betta bowl and save to purchase a tank where you can set up a proper filtration system. In my humble opinion, by doing the Pico aquarium in this setup, you may be setting yourself up for failure. Place an airstone in a freshwater tank, not a saltwater one! I admit they are cool. However, you do not want to place the burden of aerating your tank on one of these. It was not designed to do that job!!!

By the way- I think you have a cool idea! It's the wrong setting, though.... Just my 2 cents....

 

[mr_X]

I agree. This bowl is not going to be a healthy environment for very long. I suggest a nano tank made for this hobby. As for most people killing asterina starfish, I have not heard not witnessed this. As stated above, most of them are harmless algae grazers. I have them all over the place and try not to kill any of them.