?? – 09/03/09 What is this? It was caught and released in Alaskan waters, about 175' deep. It is about 14" in diameter, but was unfolding when we released it. Very interesting. <Ah, yes... a basket star; likely Gorgonocephalus eucnemis Thank you for sharing, Bob Fenner> -- Dave Gassel

Goniopora Worms – 5/26/09
All,
<Hello, Lynn here this afternoon.>
I have searched and searched but I am not finding anything on this. I apologize for the stupid question.
<Not to worry, we’re here to help. Besides, trust me - this is not a stupid question. Now if you’d asked me if it was a good idea to clean the walls of a glass tank with a hammer and chisel – that would have been a stupid question! This is not!>
I have a Goniopora Flower Pot Coral.
<Ok>
I noticed today that there are at least two long, thin, striped looking worms on it.
<Hmmm, do the stripes run the length of the body or do they wrap around the body like bands?>
Do I need to be concerned?
<I doubt it. If the stripes are actually bands around what looks like a worm body, you might be seeing a harmless mini brittle star/Ophiuroid. Take a look at the examples at the following links and see if anything looks familiar. By the way, it’s very common to see just one or two arms sticking out of the rock/coral and none of the central disk: http://www.melevsreef.com/id/baby_brittles.html
More examples here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/brittlestaridfaqs.htm >
I did try and remove one, but as soon as I touch anything with my tongs is closes up and I can no longer see the worms.
<Yep, it’s an unfortunate reality that aquatic critters seem have a universal fear of tongs. It’s like a cat and a vacuum cleaner – when the vacuum approacheth, the cat taketh offeth! <G> By the way, if what you’re seeing is not a brittle star, do try to get a photo of it - possibly through the tank glass since capture would be such a challenge. Like I said, I sincerely doubt that it’s anything to be concerned about but if you’d like to pursue an ID, it would be the next step.>
I am looking forward to any assistance you can provide.
<Just let us know if we can be of any more assistance. Take care, LynnZ>

Re: Goniopora Worms: Possible Mini-Brittle Stars - 5/26/09
Lynn,
<Hi!>
It is banded around the body like bands.
<Ok, good>
I did see some on the links that look very familiar. A bit hard to tell in that my flower pot seems very healthy and active and hard to see the worm down at the base when it is almost the same color as the coral itself - an off white/pearl color. This would appear to be harmless - wouldn't you think?
<I would think so, since you haven’t noticed any signs of damage or stress. The most common hitchhiking mini-stars appear in colors ranging from a solid white/off-white to light gray, or combinations of one of those colors and bands in shades of gray or a salmon/pinkish color. These stars are very common, harmless, beneficial, and stay small.>
I don't believe my camera would pick up a picture, but I could try if you think it is necessary.
<Nah, as long as the coral’s doing fine, I wouldn’t worry about it. Just keep an eye out, like you would any other corals/livestock.>
I never see it leave that coral and the coral seems happy, just wanted to know if I needed to worry!
<Nope, I wouldn’t worry. Most of the things that hitchhike into our tanks are beneficial or at least fairly innocuous, so chances are this is just one more example.>
Thanks Again!
<It was a pleasure! Take care, LynnZ>

Star ID? Basket Star - 2/14/09 Hello Crew, <Hi there, Luke.> This little fellow came on some live rock... see attachment. <Neat> Do you know this one? <Yep, it’s a little Basket Star.> Should I be worried about this creature in my 60 gal system with soft and LPS corals? At present it is about an inch across in size. <I wouldn’t be concerned. Basket Stars are mostly nocturnal creatures that feed on zooplankton and organic particulate matter. At night, they find a perch in an area of strong current, extend their arms, and wait for bits of food to drift by. Unfortunately, they don’t have a great survival rate in home aquaria because of how much food they require. You can increase the odds however, with direct/target feeding (turkey basters are great for this). As far as what to feed, you could try frozen baby Mysis, frozen zooplankton, enriched baby brine shrimp, etc. For more information, please see these two links: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/brittlestars.htm Good information at this link regarding feeding: http://www.reefs.org/library/article/r_toonen17.html > Any info would be appreciated. Thanks Luke <You’re very welcome. Take care, Lynn>

Unidentified Growth -sponge 11/21/08 Hi Crew! I'm attaching a picture of a white sack that is growing on the side of my live rock. <That, my friend, is what we fish-folk call a sponge.> I don't know what it is but it seems to be getting bigger. <Cool... sponges are fun, attractive, and beneficial.> It may be hard to see on the picture, but there is a little hole with a spout near the top of the sack. Is this a nest? Should I be concerned? I thank you for your time and expertise. As always, you guys are the best! <Thanks... please see here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/sponges.htm http://www.wetwebmedia.com/spongeidfaqs.htm -OneCoolFish <Enjoy your sponge! Sara M.>

Unidentified inhabitant... Microbrittle star  11/20/08
Hi everyone,
<Hi Robert, Mich here.>
I have an unidentified inhabitant in my aquarium.
<An IRI (unidentified reef inhabitant)? Heehee!>
I used to have corals in it but now only fish and live rock.
<OK.>
One of the large rocks is very porous
<Hopefully all your rocks are!>
and when the lights go out this little guy comes out to play.
<Cool!>
There are five or six, two to three inch "arms" that extend from various holes in this large rock. They are a light color with reddish brown rings that go the entire length. If I saw a body I would say serpent star but then the whole rock would have to be hollow. What would be your best guess?
<Likely a Microbrittle star, you can see images here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/brittlestaridfaqs.htm
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/britstaridf2.htm
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/britstaridf3.htm
Let me know if this is what you've got.>
Thanks
Robert
<Welcome,
Mich>

Re: Unidentified Inhabitant... Microbrittle star 11/21/2008
YEP!! That's him!
<YAY!>
Since he only comes out in the dark and then just the arms I couldn't decide if he was a star or some other URI.
<They are quite common... and beneficial... enjoy your new URI>
Thanks for the pics and info.
<Welcome!>
Robert
<Mich>

Photo to share... Ophiuroid ID f'  - 1/17/08
<Hi Bridget>
Just sharing
http://www.drekster.com/myrescues/salttank.htm
I know we've discussed the hermit crab and the baby starfish. Starting to notice more and more of the starfish, not real sure if I have more than I thought that have come in on the live rock or if they're breeding. Doubt they're breeding?
<Might very well be.>
I can think of 6 that I've spotted of various sizes, this is one of the littler ones and I have seen one, one time that was out, it had 6 legs and was about 2".
<Neat! Unfortunately, I can’t see/find it in the photo, but thank you for sharing!>
Take care
Bridget
<You too, Bridget. -Lynn>

Re: Photo to share - 1/17/08
<Hi Bridget!>
You can see the tips of two legs in this photo.
<Ah yes, I think I can just see them poking out.>
This is normal for these guys, they spend most of their time hiding in the rock with little legs sticking out catching floating particles.
<Yes, they do indeed! Many people mistake those for worms, but they're actually neat little Brittlestars (Ophiuroids)!
All of them are black and white ringed.
<That's pretty standard with these guys - black/white, gray/white, or even a pretty salmon and white!>
Bridget
<Thanks again! Take care -Lynn>

Brittle Sea Star?...Sounds like it 1/12/2008
Greetings and Happy New Year!
<And to you and yours! Mich here apologizing for the lengthy delay.>
About 8 months ago I procured a few coral specimens that were loaded with hitch hikers...
<OK.>
I noticed what I thought was a mini brittle sea star on the glass early in the morning before the light turned on about six months ago. It was about the size of a dime including legs.
<Sounds like a mini brittle star.>
I've seen it once or twice since then, a shy little thing. Tonight I saw a mass of legs poking out of my live rock. Each leg was probably 1" long. (definitely not green though! :)) It also had in its grasp some of the Mysis shrimp I was feeding my corals. I didn't think the mini stars got that large or ate Mysis; was I mistaken in my ID?
<Nope. All sounds consistent with mini brittle stars.>
Thanks,
<Welcome, Mich>
Susan

Serpent Star Question 11/08/07
Reading tons of FAQ's and reading the RC forums I found myself confused. I understood brittle stars and serpent stars to be very different creatures.
<Um, not necessarily. And this is the problem with common names. "Serpent" and "brittle" could be used to describe different animals or they could be used to describe the same animal. Please see here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/brittlestars.htm>
I also understood green brittle stars to be very dangerous inhabitants to have in a reef tank, but I had never heard anything negative about green serpent stars.
In my tank I have assorted SPS, 2 hammer corals (separate near an overflow), assorted Zoanthids, 2 blue/green Chromis, 2 pajama cardinal, 2 black Ocellaris (1.5"), 2 peppermint shrimp, and 2 skunk shrimp, and also a 5"red and 5"green serpent star) The tank is a 120G containing about 150lbs of LR, with a 25G sump, and 35G rock, Chaeto and DSB Fuge.
About 1 week ago 1 blue/green Chromis, and 1 peppermint shrimp disappeared. I had previously wondered if there was any aggression in between fish, and in order to watch I set up a mirror and watched from the next room for several hours while surfing the web.
<cool idea>
There was no aggression I could see. Now after reading some posts from people about "dangerous green serpent stars" I wonder whether my green serpent star is the offender (there was no body found), or if someone was just mistaken and meant to right green brittle star.
<Maybe they weren't "mistaken" per se but simply had a different idea of how to use the name(s).>
To sum this all up, is the green serpent star dangerous, or does "green death" only apply to green brittle stars?
<I think that the names "green serpent" and "green brittle" are often used interchangeably. I've seen Ophioarachna incrassata called by either name. Again, this is the tragedy of common names. So, my friend, I'm sorry to say it sounds like you may likely have the dreaded "Green Death" star (yet another common name--though one a bit more specific in this case).>
Thank you so much in advance, you folks were a wonderful resources helping me get started.
Joshua
<Thank you and de nada,
Sara M.>