Something GLOWING ... BRIGHT!

[Jermz79]

I got up this A.M. with my little one and after I put her back to sleep, I was stumbling back to my room ... as I passed the tank I caught something out of the corner of my eye that startled me!!!

It was very bright green ... Glowing ... almost like it was under a blacklight! I grabbed my little flash light and aimed it at the area in question ... and the only thing that was there was the legs of one of my many Brittle stars that hangs out in the crevices!

Is this possible that Brittle stars glow? and if so what would make them glow?

I did also notice there was a new crab I have never seen, must have came with the new piece of LR I just put in! The crab was red, about the size of a nickel with hairy legs! Anyway the crab was very close to where the legs were glowing ... is it possible this is a defense mechanism from the star?

Any Ideas?


Thanks,
Jermz

 

[SpEd]

Do you have any type of moonlights on the tank?

 

[Jermz79]

Yup, but they were not on last night, I had added a new fish and wanted him to get settled in!

And speaking of ... I had not seen this until the moonlights were off. When they are on I can see all the legs waving about in the water, But never have I seen them GLOW like this.

The only way I can describe it is a bright green glow almost like there was a black light on the tank! 8O


By the way I added a Coral Beauty Angel!!! Very pretty fish!

 

[schoeplein]

No idea about the star...

...as for the crab get him out of your tank. Probably a gorilla crab from the sounds of it. Does the little bugger have black tips for claws? He wont stay small, will destroy everything, and if it gets big enough it can and probably will catch your fish. 8O

 

[Jermz79]

I don't think it's a gorilla crab, and it doesn't have black tips ... they are red as well! I watched it for a while and it seemed to graze on the algea in the LR!

This is puzzling ... I have searched the net for "glowing starfish" & "luminescent starfish" and have came up with nothing!!!! I'm tellin ya, it was very strange ....


paging steve-s .... paging steve-s!!!!!

 

[steve-s]

It could most likely an amphipod depending on the size of the "apparation". They will gain a bioluminesence when trying to attract a mate. It is actually quite a common appearance, it's just we are rarely if ever around to witness it.

Cheers
Steve

 

[MantisFreak]

Sounds like a red mithrax crab. Looks just like an emerald mithrax with hairy legs but is obviously red instead of green.

There are bioluminescent bacteria and dinoflagellates. I wonder if they are what you saw glowing.

 

[Jermz79]

I don't know!!!

This was long like a worm .... and it wiggled ... I actually watched it for a minute before turning on the flashlight!!! When I turned on the flashlight the only thing in the area was the leg of a brittle star sticking out of the rock!!! I have to assume it was the star's leg "Glowing" ... but I guess it could have been something else!

Freaky .... TGIF ... now I can sit up all night and watch for the GLOW ... maybe I could video tape it and stream it on the net????

 

[Jermz79]

Sounds like a red mithrax crab. Looks just like an emerald mithrax with hairy legs but is obviously red instead of green.

There are bioluminescent bacteria and dinoflagellates. I wonder if they are what you saw glowing.

Yeah, didn't even think about the mithrax crab ... probably correct! Are they bad or good?


As for the other things???????? No clue! I'm still in awe from it! I wonder if was some bioluminescent bacteria attached to the stars legs?

 

[MantisFreak]

Mithrax crabs really don't cause too much of a problem in most peoples tanks.

 

[SALTYDAWGY]

Marty,

Did you accidently feed your fish the plutonium I set aside for the flux capacitor?