Green Serpent Star

[KSum89]

I bought one of these yesterday, and this morning. i'm seeing alot of mixed reviews on them. Are they good for aquariums or bad? I don't want a starfish eating my fish overnight, just got him to possibly help keep my sand bed clean. I don't know if its the green brittle star which is mean or green serpent star which is the silent killer. But give me feedback asap before this thing costs me money in replacement, if it will..

I also bought some Frozen Krill to mix up the forzen foods i feed along with frozen brine, mysis shrimp and a slatwater marine mix. But didn't see anyone chase it down, but my six line ate a couple. So i guess its for predatory fish?

My fish:
Six Line Wrasse
True Percula Clown
Peppermint Shrimp
2 Sea Urchins ((i just seen a little one beside my bigger one this morning, Black fuzzy balls with brown spikes))
and a Diamond Goby


-They had huge ocellaris clowns labeled as True Percula.

 

[Rscomia]

I have one in each of my tanks and the only thing that either one of them might have ate and I dont know this for sure but I had a sick green chromis and the next day I couldnt find it anywhere

 

[KSum89]

I saw that they eat sick or dead fish. but will they stress my fish out to death trying to catch them?? my diamond goby was just in the starfish cave, idk what was going on because when i got close to try to see in it my goby paused...then ran away.

 

[Rscomia]

Mine dont seem to even attempt to bother my fish and I have one that will measure over a foot across his 2 longest legs I feed mine about once a week and give them a small silverside they love them

 

[KSum89]

Ok could it feed on my frozen foods and be satisfied? Mysis shrimp, brine shrimp and krill? Hoping something will eat all of this krill, since i opened it already..

You think its worth possibly risking some fish life by having a serpent star? I told the guy at the LFS i wanted to add something thatll clean up the sand bed and he offered me this. I was looking at the chocolate starfish but he said they are not reef compatible as they eat anything in their way.

 

[Rscomia]

+1 one on the chocolate star reef lawnmowers I dont know how well they like krill but mine goes crazy over mysis to they just seem to have a harder time catching it

 

[KSum89]

+1 one on the chocolate star reef lawnmowers I dont know how well they like krill but mine goes crazy over mysis to they just seem to have a harder time catching it

Ok but do you think its worth possibly risking some fish life by keeping this serpent star? I really don't want to be suprised one day and have a mysterious death or sickness one morning.

 

[Rscomia]

From my experience with them I would but they are probably like everything else in the hobby Each one has their own unique personality

 

[KSum89]

Ok other than your chromis you've had no other problems? See whats stuck in my head is.. I know my clown sleeps in the back of the tank on the right side every morning near the bottom. I'm thinking this star will sneak up on him one night..and kill it. But i may have read too much about the green brittle and people geting them confused, so it may just be me. But the peperc clown is my favorite fish, so i don't want nothing happening to it.

 

[Rscomia]

The green chromis is the only thing Ive had and it was sick in the first place and I still cant prove it was what ate it

 

[KSum89]

Ok thanks Rscomia

-One more question, will he ever start to come out? Right now i only see one arm waving back and fourth sometime.

 

[Rscomia]

They are nocturnal by nature I very rarely see any more than what you do during the daytime unless im feeding them then they cant wait to get out from under their rock I do see mine move around alot at night when the moonlights come on

 

[KSum89]

This is the same star your talking about right? I took a pic when it was feeding time

 

[Rscomia]

This is a pic of one of mine

 

[Maya]

That looks like the green serpent star that we had. He grew into a monster. When he went to the LFS he filled the bottom of a five gallon bucket and still had to curl his arms up to fit. Ours lived peacefully with a clown. Once the lights shut off though he was immediately hunting. I was always way more worried about my inverts than my fish.

 

[KSum89]

Yeah everyday i wake up i check to make sure my peppermint is there. So far so good.. Everyone is still there, my goby stole the food the starfis was goin after.. Thought that was funny because he had all kind of food in front of him but took the stars.

Hoping he doesnt grab him or my clown overnight. Ill return him with the quickness if he does.. i plan on adding reef safe hermits and more shrimp.

 

[KSum89]

This is a pic of one of mine

Rscomia your starfish looks like a huge brittle star. So many tentacles/spikes on his arms.

 

[Rscomia]

Yeah he was the one I was telling you about that would measure at least a foot across his longest tentacles

 

[austinsdad]

Serpent stars do nothing for the sand bed but eat leftover food or dead critters. Same as shrimp or crabs do with less worry than a green brittle star. They are more aggresive likely cause they get huge. Look into serpent stars or other brittles. Again, less worry IMO than the green.

Btw, don't trust that LFS guy who told you they clean the sand bed. At least not what I think you're looking for.

 

[KSum89]

Serpent stars do nothing for the sand bed but eat leftover food or dead critters. Same as shrimp or crabs do with less worry than a green brittle star. They are more aggresive likely cause they get huge. Look into serpent stars or other brittles. Again, less worry IMO than the green.

Btw, don't trust that LFS guy who told you they clean the sand bed. At least not what I think you're looking for.

Eating leftover food is what i meant, i dont want anything eating beneficial stuff out of the sand. Just some nocturnal creatures that eat the leftover food on it overnight. I did research all over and now i can tell the difference between brittles and serpents and i keep coming across.. Green stars are dangerous.. "Green death" some are killers. Brittles more likely than serpent but im seeing serpents can kill too.. Do i need to remove it? I dont wanna lose any small hermits when i add them.. Or shrimp.