Hello,
I bought a little red starfish last week from my LFS. They just had it labelled "Red starfish"- upon further research, I think it may be a fromia milleporella? But I'm really not sure, so I'm attaching a photo of my little star if that helps with identification.
Okay, please don't judge me... I always do a lot of research before taking on any pet. Except this time, when apparently, I really needed to do the research. I just fell in love with this little guy at the store, I had just gotten some money in the mail from my parents as a Halloween present, and thought that he would be the perfect little addition to my 6 month old aquarium, which only had some live rock and a couple of ocellaris clowns. I asked a lot of questions at the store, and was told that these starfish are very hardy, only reach about 2" long, have no lighting requirements, and will eat algae pellets. Easy! I figured that, equipped with that most basic of knowledge, I could do more research when I got home. Yes, I know. Stop judging.
So when I got home and started researching, I found, of course, that this little guy was more complicated than I thought it would be. I acclimated it over the course of about an hour- too quickly, I now know. I also didn't think to check the water parameters of the original tank to know how far off my tank was. For a couple days, it hardly moved. Now, it's finally moving around on the live rock that I set it on. It's not showing any outward signs of illness- everything seems fine. I'm just worried, though. I realize that my little star is not in the best situation. I've considered returning it to the LFS, but I'm afraid that going through the acclimation again would just kill it faster.
I have a 14 gallon aquarium with full-spectrum daylight. I was told to keep the lights on from the time I wake up until I go to bed to build up the algae in my immature tank. I use natural seawater purchased from Petco.
If you have any advice for how to care for this little critter, I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you!
I bought a little red starfish last week from my LFS. They just had it labelled "Red starfish"- upon further research, I think it may be a fromia milleporella? But I'm really not sure, so I'm attaching a photo of my little star if that helps with identification.
Okay, please don't judge me... I always do a lot of research before taking on any pet. Except this time, when apparently, I really needed to do the research. I just fell in love with this little guy at the store, I had just gotten some money in the mail from my parents as a Halloween present, and thought that he would be the perfect little addition to my 6 month old aquarium, which only had some live rock and a couple of ocellaris clowns. I asked a lot of questions at the store, and was told that these starfish are very hardy, only reach about 2" long, have no lighting requirements, and will eat algae pellets. Easy! I figured that, equipped with that most basic of knowledge, I could do more research when I got home. Yes, I know. Stop judging.
So when I got home and started researching, I found, of course, that this little guy was more complicated than I thought it would be. I acclimated it over the course of about an hour- too quickly, I now know. I also didn't think to check the water parameters of the original tank to know how far off my tank was. For a couple days, it hardly moved. Now, it's finally moving around on the live rock that I set it on. It's not showing any outward signs of illness- everything seems fine. I'm just worried, though. I realize that my little star is not in the best situation. I've considered returning it to the LFS, but I'm afraid that going through the acclimation again would just kill it faster.
I have a 14 gallon aquarium with full-spectrum daylight. I was told to keep the lights on from the time I wake up until I go to bed to build up the algae in my immature tank. I use natural seawater purchased from Petco.
If you have any advice for how to care for this little critter, I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you!