Starfish with bimacs?

[tonmo]

Hi @octobot, a question about starfish in cold water, cohabitating with bimacs:

Hey everyone, I have two octopus setups, one Caribbean Reef and one Bimac. In the setup with the Caribbean Reef, I have a smaller Chocolate Chip Starfish which has been great at cleaning up the scraps left behind. That has kept the tank really clean and he leaves the Octopus alone (I have read the one horror story of the one that cornered a smaller octopus, but my star is smaller and they avoid each other).

In the Bimac tank, it only has the Bimac and a few tiny hermit crabs. I was trying to research a friendly starfish to add in with the Bimac to clean up after it. However, most starfish have a temp range of 72-80 degrees and I am running a chiller for the Bimac and the tank is at about 65 degrees. I am having difficulty even finding species of starfish that do well in a colder environment and was curious if anyone has any Starfish in their Bimac tank with a chiller to help get me started on which species to research?

 

[octobot]

Hi @octobot, a question about starfish in cold water, cohabitating with bimacs:

Hey everyone, I have two octopus setups, one Caribbean Reef and one Bimac. In the setup with the Caribbean Reef, I have a smaller Chocolate Chip Starfish which has been great at cleaning up the scraps left behind. That has kept the tank really clean and he leaves the Octopus alone (I have read the one horror story of the one that cornered a smaller octopus, but my star is smaller and they avoid each other).

In the Bimac tank, it only has the Bimac and a few tiny hermit crabs. I was trying to research a friendly starfish to add in with the Bimac to clean up after it. However, most starfish have a temp range of 72-80 degrees and I am running a chiller for the Bimac and the tank is at about 65 degrees. I am having difficulty even finding species of starfish that do well in a colder environment and was curious if anyone has any Starfish in their Bimac tank with a chiller to help get me started on which species to research?

Hello SharkPHD,

Thank you for your question about cohabitating starfish with a bimac octopus in a cold water environment. It is important to carefully consider tank mates for any cephalopod, as they can be sensitive to changes in their environment and may react negatively to certain species.

In general, it is not recommended to keep starfish with octopuses, as they can potentially harm or stress the octopus. However, if you have had success with a smaller Chocolate Chip Starfish in your Caribbean Reef tank, it is possible that a similar species may work in your Bimac tank as well.

Some species of starfish that are known to do well in colder water environments include the Bat Star (Patir

Please note that this response was generated by a robot.

 

[tonmo]

not bad, but it ran out of tokens for the response

But @SharkPHD, here's another post from the past indicating that a bat star may have peacefully co-existed with a bimac:

Trinity O. bimaculoides

I got my bimac from Joe-Ceph today! Thank you Conrad! He send some goodies too! A few sea stars and some snails... I have a COLD WATER TANK! Not just and octopus! YAY! Ok sorry I will calm down now. I am just thrilled with having him do this for me. Here are some pics...

tonmo.com

 

[octobot]

not bad, but it ran out of tokens for the response

But @SharkPHD, here's another post from the past indicating that a bat star may have peacefully co-existed with a bimac:

Trinity O. bimaculoides

I got my bimac from Joe-Ceph today! Thank you Conrad! He send some goodies too! A few sea stars and some snails... I have a COLD WATER TANK! Not just and octopus! YAY! Ok sorry I will calm down now. I am just thrilled with having him do this for me. Here are some pics...

tonmo.com

And it's worth underscoring a key point from above, which I've also heard over the years:

In general, it is not recommended to keep starfish with octopuses, as they can potentially harm or stress the octopus.

Thank you for bringing this to my attention, @SharkPHD. While there may be some anecdotal evidence of peaceful coexistence between octopuses and bat stars, it is important to remember that every individual octopus and starfish may have different personalities and behaviors. It is always best to err on the side of caution and avoid keeping starfish with octopuses, as they can potentially harm or stress the octopus. Additionally, it is important to research and consider the specific needs and compatibility of all tank inhabitants before adding them to a tank. Thank you for promoting responsible and informed care for these amazing creatures.

Please note that this response was generated by a robot.