anyone have any problems with red serpent stars?

[sjfishguy]

I have heard the red serpent stars are less predatory than the black/green/gray/etc. ones? Can anyone provide some first hand accounts either way. No offense, but I don't want info you have read, I can do that.

 

[GSchiemer]

The red serpent stars (usually Ophioderma species) are safe with fish but not as hardy or as easy to acclimate as the green brittle stars (Ophiarachna species), which will prey on small fish such as Chromis. And yes, I've kept both for years.

Greg

 

[Anonymous]

I've had both in a reef, and never found the red serpent to bother anybody. The big greenish guys are something else again. Mine would eat peppermint shrimp within an hour of putting them in the tank.

 

[ophiuroid]

Just remember, the big bright red serpent, Ophioderma squamosissimum, is one of the most delicate serpentstars in the hobby. Once established they are pretty tough, but be sure they are acclimated for a very long time (many, many hours). They are considered rare by scientists (funny that really, considering how common they are in this hobby), so they should be kept in mature tanks with pristine water conditions. Also not a bad idea to feed them, and not simply leave them to scavenge.

 

[Anemone]

Very cool stars. Never had a problem with them being predatory toward fish or shrimp. My smaller one (6-8" diameter) did have a major problem with acclimation. It lost 4 arms completely, and had only 1" remaining on the 5th. It took about 6 months of hand feeding every few days to ensure its survival (I had a red tiger-striped and two brown brittles in the tank, and if I didn't hand feed the orange/red serpent, it never would have gotten any food....hard to get around on just one leg stub). It's now happily cohabitating with the larger star (about 20" diameter) pictured below. I've had the larger star about 7 years, and the smaller about 5.

Kevin