So I picked up a new starfish over the weekend and the next day poor little guy was missing a leg. So I got to watching the tank to see if anyone was picking on him. No sign of anyone messing with him during the day so I started checking on the tank at night only to find I have some humongous bristle worms in the tank that I have never seen before. I managed to capture two bristle worms about 8 to 10 inches long chomping away on the poor starfish in the middle of the night. I disposed of the two came back to the tank only to find another one stretching his head out of a rock to grab what was left of the starfish. I couldn't catch it but I got to tell you that bad boy was intimidating and I'm ready to throw all the rock either out or in the sump and start over. Poor little starfish didn't make it.
Bristle worms ate my starfish
- Thread starter codsack
- Start date
I had a few bristle worms in my tank! I got a very fat 6 line and haven't seen any since. The only remnants was a 6" chewed up red string thing a few days later. But as Lmm1967 said I've never seen or heard of bristle worms eating moving creatures.
Sent from my SM-N920T using Tapatalk
Sent from my SM-N920T using Tapatalk
The starfish was dying and was giving of the smell to trigger the clean up crew. I have thousands of bristles worms in my systems(I feed heavy and they clean up) and have had many starfish that have lived with them without harm. It is very hard to tell a healthy starfish, they may look good for a while and sudden become sick, our water chemistry may be different and there may not be enought food for them, we don't know what they went thru during capture and shipping. Have you ever bought snails and brought them home acclimated them put them in the tank and a week later start finding empty shells. I think this happend with all inverts, it's the luck of the draw!
I had something similar happen this past week. I had two saltwater acclimated mollies and one was weakish. I have an overabundance of bristle worms right now due to a tank crash during a move. They did a great job of cleaning up but they're super hungry now and I want them gone. I watched as the weak-looking molly swam along the sand and three ravenous worms seem to have stung it to death in front of my eyes. This hobby is brutal, I swear.
I agree that the starfish was already dying and/or was weak and that is why the bristle worms starting eating it.
Bristles are not known to attack other animals like that. But they will sense very early on when an animal is about to start dying and will make use of that opportunity.
In my opinion bristle worms are some of the best tank inhabitants one can have.
Bristles are not known to attack other animals like that. But they will sense very early on when an animal is about to start dying and will make use of that opportunity.
In my opinion bristle worms are some of the best tank inhabitants one can have.
I've always said, "Love thy worms."
The star was rotting so the worms helped prevent the water from being fouled by decaying tissue.
What kind of star was it, and how did you acclimate it?
That's the REAL issue here. The worms were doing a service.
Jenn
The star was rotting so the worms helped prevent the water from being fouled by decaying tissue.
What kind of star was it, and how did you acclimate it?
That's the REAL issue here. The worms were doing a service.
Jenn
I've to share an opinion that I've found in another places from people related to the same hobby, more likely the starfish wouldn't make it after some time in your tank, they eat and require in his diet little worms, clams and such, they're not scavengers and they don't eat detritus as the bristle worms do, and more likely the starfish it's on the last stage of starvation and that it's when they start to disintegrate.
Starfish are some critters that I was really wanting to keep in this small tank, but the more I find facts about them the more I want to forget getting one, specially since some are destined to live a short season in a tank, wondering how long has been one member to keep them long term and how it was accomplished.
Starfish are some critters that I was really wanting to keep in this small tank, but the more I find facts about them the more I want to forget getting one, specially since some are destined to live a short season in a tank, wondering how long has been one member to keep them long term and how it was accomplished.
