Let's talk about Harlequin shrimp

E.intheC · 06/24/2009, 07:08 AM

I'm really interested in these guys. Please post pics, stories, first hand experiences, and general knowledge. Thanks!!!

AJSTITAN14 · 06/24/2009, 07:54 AM

Unless you have a feeder population of Asterina stars in a sump or feedstock tank don't get one. This practice of chopping arms off large stars to feed Harlies is cruel.

E.intheC · 06/24/2009, 09:20 AM

Yep, knew about that already. I agree with you. However, let's try to be positive and suggest ways to go about buying/growing asterinas :-)

Anyone have experience/pics?

VacavilleFC3S · 06/24/2009, 03:00 PM

nobody sells asterinas in the amounts you'd need. chocolate chip starfish are there main diet.

E.intheC · 06/24/2009, 03:57 PM

So, let's do this: post if you have ways to grow/propogate asterina star fish.

Alternatively, how many stars do you have to feed the shrimp?

snorvich · 06/24/2009, 05:11 PM

Starfish regrow legs that are chopped off. Chocolate chip starfish, by the way, are not reef safe.

markeo99 · 06/24/2009, 05:41 PM

I have 3 choc chips and alterrnate them they are not reef safe but if there is only one in my reef tank the harlequin sits on it even brings it food so they are reef safe if they cant move

E.intheC · 06/24/2009, 06:23 PM

so you alternate the chocolate chips? Do you mean you have one in the display tank, then you take him out, then put another one in there? meanwhile, the stars will regrow their arms?

Thanks for the replies

hiramshaish · 06/25/2009, 07:48 AM

sounds cruel to me...

"Umm, fish?" · 06/25/2009, 04:26 PM

No offense, but what do you all feed your fish? Most fish are carnivores or omnivores, so something died somewhere to feed them.

E.intheC · 06/25/2009, 05:36 PM

I'm sure there's a way to grow out the asterina stars.. (Besides overfeeding your tank that is)...

And no one has pictures of these guys in their tanks?

Pulp Fishin · 06/27/2009, 10:27 AM

I have 2 spare tanks going besides the tank my Harlequins are in. My 135g tank & 5gal nano and I have put astrea stars in both tanks. I can take apx 10-15 stars out of both tanks a week to 10 days without depleating the astrea population.
There is no way I'm ever able to harvest enough astreas too keep my 2 harlequins well fed. I suplement their feeding mostly with chocostars. They love linkia stars but they get to be costly so they mabby get 3 linkias a year compared to 1-2 choco stars a month.

Cheers!

AJSTITAN14 · 06/27/2009, 12:52 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by "Umm, fish?"
No offense, but what do you all feed your fish? Most fish are carnivores or omnivores, so something died somewhere to feed them.

Killing something isn't the issue. Keeping something just alive enough to harvest a part of it over and over again is the part I have a problem with. This is not a humane practice.

E.intheC · 06/27/2009, 02:02 PM

pulp, those are beauties! Do they come out a lot, or do they hide?

"Umm, fish?" · 06/27/2009, 09:35 PM

Quote:

Killing something isn't the issue. Keeping something just alive enough to harvest a part of it over and over again is the part I have a problem with. This is not a humane practice.

And yet, when people do it with corals and anemones, it's called fragging. Besides, many starfish reproduce asexually in just that way. Just saying that it's not exactly a black and white situation. I'm not exactly completely comfortable with the idea myself, though I suppose that it's possible to maintain 50 starfish in a separate system so that you'd only have to harvest one arm from one starfish once per year. Would that be better since you're avoiding the "just alive enough" part? Or, is it better to just give the shrimp the whole starfish at once so that it just dies and then you haven't cut off an arm?

I'm not saying that it's not a moral quandary. I just don't think it's a simple one.

E.intheC · 06/28/2009, 06:49 AM

lots of good points have been made about this debate. The one thing I agree on is that it's not a black/white issue for sure

circusink22 · 06/28/2009, 07:49 AM

i got a harlequin too eat my overpopulation of stars, took him about 3 weeks too eat thousands of stars, i have a few CC in my fuge i rotate breaking arms too feed my harlequin every other week in between the CC starfish legs he munchs on Asterina stars that still multiply in my tank. I have had my shrimp for 3 or 4 months seen him molt twice he hides under my bubble in the day and at night comes out to eat. As for it being cruel breaking legs off a starfish well i cant agree the shrimp needs to eat, I see it no more cruel then feedings my snakes rats, or watching a cat stalk and kill a rabbit or mouse, or catching a fish in a lake and eating that lol you get my point.

E.intheC · 06/28/2009, 12:12 PM

wow.. if your numbers are correct, 1000's of stars is a TON. Probably less than that, eh?

circusink22 · 06/28/2009, 02:04 PM

when i first put my harlequin in the water it started eating, within 2 hours all the Asterina stars climed to the top of the tank me and my wife counted a little over a thousend of them. it was almost 3 inches of stars at the top of the tank and my camras were dead. couple of my friends saw it and couldnt belive it, and like i said in about 3 weeks they were gone i just have some straglers that are still multipling enough to give my shrimp a snack.

E.intheC · 06/28/2009, 03:31 PM

wow. It's incredible how much those shrimp will eat.

How big is your tank?

circusink22 · 06/28/2009, 05:16 PM

55g those stars multiply fast

Pulp Fishin · 06/29/2009, 10:19 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by E.intheC
pulp, those are beauties! Do they come out a lot, or do they hide?

Thanks these are my reef Romeo & Juliet! When I first got them they were very shy and only came out when they were hungry.
Now they seem more outgoing and willing to come out in the open a few times a day.

As for the comments on how much they eat, in my experience they are ravenous! Its incredible they will eat a star that is way heavier they they are in a matter of days.

tpdpercula · 07/10/2009, 01:43 PM

I keep ample numbers of Choclate Chips in my clownfish system and just grab one when its feeding time. The Astrias crawl up the top of the glass in the tanks I have Harlequins in so if I see them I just run my algae magnet by them and hope that the shrimp find them before they crawl up again.

Dave Harms · 07/11/2009, 05:37 PM

Mine eventually died when I couldn't get any choco-stars for too long.

Having a second tank to keep stars in and just feed an arm would be a good idea.

jwilliams860 · 07/12/2009, 09:15 PM

I originally bout a breding pair at a LFS about 4 months ago, I also had asterina star outbreak in my tank, in a bout a month they had my 120 cleaned up, only ones still around were in my overflows and sump, id pull them out and the harleys would take them off my finger to eat, I buy a choco star at the LFS about twice a month for them to eat, this is in a reef tank also, and dont worry if you just drop the star in front of them it wont do any damage to your coral, they wont let him get far, the star would climb around some, but they rode him the whole time and would flip him over and make short work of him, mine molt about once a month now, and she lays eggs often to.These are awesome creatures to have and watch, unfortunately their diet is paticular and if you cant stomach feeding them what they require I would pass.

06/24/2009, 07:08 AM	#1
E.intheC Minimalist Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Long Island NY Posts: 5,064	Let's talk about Harlequin shrimp I'm really interested in these guys. Please post pics, stories, first hand experiences, and general knowledge. Thanks!!! __________________ -Eric 34 Gallon Solana BB cube. Radion \| Tunze/MP10 \| JNS WS-1 \| Apex Jr.

06/24/2009, 09:20 AM	#3
E.intheC Minimalist Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Long Island NY Posts: 5,064	Yep, knew about that already. I agree with you. However, let's try to be positive and suggest ways to go about buying/growing asterinas :-) Anyone have experience/pics? __________________ -Eric 34 Gallon Solana BB cube. Radion \| Tunze/MP10 \| JNS WS-1 \| Apex Jr.

06/24/2009, 03:57 PM	#5
E.intheC Minimalist Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Long Island NY Posts: 5,064	So, let's do this: post if you have ways to grow/propogate asterina star fish. Alternatively, how many stars do you have to feed the shrimp? __________________ -Eric 34 Gallon Solana BB cube. Radion \| Tunze/MP10 \| JNS WS-1 \| Apex Jr.

06/24/2009, 05:11 PM	#6
snorvich Team RC member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Flatlander Posts: 26,107 Blog Entries: 27	Starfish regrow legs that are chopped off. Chocolate chip starfish, by the way, are not reef safe. __________________ Warmest regards and best wishes, ~Steve~ It is my policy to not respond to those who ask questions not to learn but to be bellicose. Life is a series of decisions serially executed but collectively judged. "Not using a quarantine tank is like playing Russian roulette. Nobody wins the game, some people just get to play longer than others." - Anthony Calfo

06/24/2009, 06:23 PM	#8
E.intheC Minimalist Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Long Island NY Posts: 5,064	so you alternate the chocolate chips? Do you mean you have one in the display tank, then you take him out, then put another one in there? meanwhile, the stars will regrow their arms? Thanks for the replies __________________ -Eric 34 Gallon Solana BB cube. Radion \| Tunze/MP10 \| JNS WS-1 \| Apex Jr.

06/24/2009, 07:54 AM	#2
AJSTITAN14 Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Detroit, MI Posts: 304	Unless you have a feeder population of Asterina stars in a sump or feedstock tank don't get one. This practice of chopping arms off large stars to feed Harlies is cruel.

06/24/2009, 03:00 PM	#4
VacavilleFC3S Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Vacaville California Posts: 2,625	nobody sells asterinas in the amounts you'd need. chocolate chip starfish are there main diet.

06/24/2009, 05:41 PM	#7
markeo99 Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: south dakota Posts: 185	I have 3 choc chips and alterrnate them they are not reef safe but if there is only one in my reef tank the harlequin sits on it even brings it food so they are reef safe if they cant move

06/25/2009, 07:48 AM	#9
hiramshaish Moved On Join Date: Dec 2008 Posts: 37	sounds cruel to me...

06/25/2009, 04:26 PM	#10
"Umm, fish?" Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Boulder, CO Posts: 4,118	No offense, but what do you all feed your fish? Most fish are carnivores or omnivores, so something died somewhere to feed them. __________________ --Andy "And chase the frothy bubbles, / While the world is full of troubles. . . ." --W. B. Yeats Current Tank Info: ~480 gal. display, ~1,400 gal. system

06/25/2009, 05:36 PM	#11
E.intheC Minimalist Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Long Island NY Posts: 5,064	I'm sure there's a way to grow out the asterina stars.. (Besides overfeeding your tank that is)... And no one has pictures of these guys in their tanks? __________________ -Eric 34 Gallon Solana BB cube. Radion \| Tunze/MP10 \| JNS WS-1 \| Apex Jr.

06/27/2009, 10:27 AM	#12
Pulp Fishin Were all mad here. Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: London Ontario Canada Posts: 608	I have 2 spare tanks going besides the tank my Harlequins are in. My 135g tank & 5gal nano and I have put astrea stars in both tanks. I can take apx 10-15 stars out of both tanks a week to 10 days without depleating the astrea population. There is no way I'm ever able to harvest enough astreas too keep my 2 harlequins well fed. I suplement their feeding mostly with chocostars. They love linkia stars but they get to be costly so they mabby get 3 linkias a year compared to 1-2 choco stars a month. Cheers! __________________ Reef Central Corner Club Aquarium Dumpster Diver Extraordinaire Money talks, mine says "Good-Bye" Current Tank Info: RIP:60g Pentagon Reef 100lbs LR 20g Sump Deltec Mce 600 Mag 750 250W Metal Halide & 2x39W T5's Phosban ReactorX2 5gal refugium 36xTO RIP:135G FOWLER /Agressive

06/27/2009, 02:02 PM	#14
E.intheC Minimalist Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Long Island NY Posts: 5,064	pulp, those are beauties! Do they come out a lot, or do they hide? __________________ -Eric 34 Gallon Solana BB cube. Radion \| Tunze/MP10 \| JNS WS-1 \| Apex Jr.

06/28/2009, 06:49 AM	#16
E.intheC Minimalist Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Long Island NY Posts: 5,064	lots of good points have been made about this debate. The one thing I agree on is that it's not a black/white issue for sure __________________ -Eric 34 Gallon Solana BB cube. Radion \| Tunze/MP10 \| JNS WS-1 \| Apex Jr.

06/28/2009, 07:49 AM	#17
circusink22 Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: pa Posts: 178	i got a harlequin too eat my overpopulation of stars, took him about 3 weeks too eat thousands of stars, i have a few CC in my fuge i rotate breaking arms too feed my harlequin every other week in between the CC starfish legs he munchs on Asterina stars that still multiply in my tank. I have had my shrimp for 3 or 4 months seen him molt twice he hides under my bubble in the day and at night comes out to eat. As for it being cruel breaking legs off a starfish well i cant agree the shrimp needs to eat, I see it no more cruel then feedings my snakes rats, or watching a cat stalk and kill a rabbit or mouse, or catching a fish in a lake and eating that lol you get my point.

06/28/2009, 12:12 PM	#18
E.intheC Minimalist Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Long Island NY Posts: 5,064	wow.. if your numbers are correct, 1000's of stars is a TON. Probably less than that, eh? __________________ -Eric 34 Gallon Solana BB cube. Radion \| Tunze/MP10 \| JNS WS-1 \| Apex Jr.

06/28/2009, 02:04 PM	#19
circusink22 Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: pa Posts: 178	when i first put my harlequin in the water it started eating, within 2 hours all the Asterina stars climed to the top of the tank me and my wife counted a little over a thousend of them. it was almost 3 inches of stars at the top of the tank and my camras were dead. couple of my friends saw it and couldnt belive it, and like i said in about 3 weeks they were gone i just have some straglers that are still multipling enough to give my shrimp a snack.

06/28/2009, 03:31 PM	#20
E.intheC Minimalist Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Long Island NY Posts: 5,064	wow. It's incredible how much those shrimp will eat. How big is your tank? __________________ -Eric 34 Gallon Solana BB cube. Radion \| Tunze/MP10 \| JNS WS-1 \| Apex Jr.

06/28/2009, 05:16 PM	#21
circusink22 Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: pa Posts: 178	55g those stars multiply fast

07/10/2009, 01:43 PM	#23
tpdpercula Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: The Death Star Posts: 1,205	I keep ample numbers of Choclate Chips in my clownfish system and just grab one when its feeding time. The Astrias crawl up the top of the glass in the tanks I have Harlequins in so if I see them I just run my algae magnet by them and hope that the shrimp find them before they crawl up again. __________________ If I would have spent the money that was used on corals, fish, etc. My mortgage would be paid for already!!!! Current Tank Info: 210g Mixed Reef tank, (2) 60g frag tanks (containing a Sohal in one & Naso in the other along with breeding pairs of True Percs, 40g frag tank w/Pair of Picassos, 24 Nano w/ breeding pair of True Percs and 24 Nano Mixed Reef w/pair of Ocellaris

07/11/2009, 05:37 PM	#24
Dave Harms Premium Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: New Orleans, LA Posts: 513	Mine eventually died when I couldn't get any choco-stars for too long. Having a second tank to keep stars in and just feed an arm would be a good idea. __________________ Dave Harms Current Tank Info: Established July 2008: 12g Oceanic, 4x 24w T5's, VorTech MP10, Tunze Nano Wavebox 6206, Phosban Reactor w/ BRS GFO powered by a Tunze Silence, Marineland Penguin 350, 50w Stealth heater

07/12/2009, 09:15 PM	#25
jwilliams860 Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Charlotte NC Posts: 375	I originally bout a breding pair at a LFS about 4 months ago, I also had asterina star outbreak in my tank, in a bout a month they had my 120 cleaned up, only ones still around were in my overflows and sump, id pull them out and the harleys would take them off my finger to eat, I buy a choco star at the LFS about twice a month for them to eat, this is in a reef tank also, and dont worry if you just drop the star in front of them it wont do any damage to your coral, they wont let him get far, the star would climb around some, but they rode him the whole time and would flip him over and make short work of him, mine molt about once a month now, and she lays eggs often to.These are awesome creatures to have and watch, unfortunately their diet is paticular and if you cant stomach feeding them what they require I would pass.