Harlequin Shrimps

[lvcap]

Hi all Harlequin Shrimp Lovers...

care to share how u guys feed those cute and beautiful shrimps?

My method:

I just dump the starfish in ....for them to rip apart...but the problem is that they always kill the starfish immediately...normally...they should slowly nibble at it till finish....mine are perverts ...they rip it apart and kill it even before eating 1/2 of the poor starfish..

This resulted in an ammonia spike..not a lot..

its still <0.5mg using Salifert....but i did notice the darker colouration compared to the time before i added them in...

I was thinking of these 2 possible methods:

Put my starfish in my sump or ref...cut the legs and feed them slowly..

Freeze the strafish to death and cut it into pcs..and feed them..

Which do u guys suggest?

Or any better methods?

i dint use Linckia..i tried sand shifting star and another type..the one found in CF recently..and they fed it to their own Harlequin shrimps that they were selling..

mine grew very fast ....from mini tots ..they are now huge...and one lost one beautiful claw after fighting..

got 5 such cute fellows in my 5feet tank..

[Terryz_]

Freezing the starfish seems like a good idea... but the problem is do they eat frozen starfish... hehe...

[blacknails]

I read that the best option is to feed them limb by limb instead of dumping the whole starfish in at once..

[dravan]

i tink juz cut the legs apart n let the starfish suffer in the refugium

[Terryz_]

But the starfish will died and rot in the refug... After cutting the starfish... the starfish wun survive lor...

[dravan]

ermmm tink starfish not so easy die one.... jus cut a leg at a time.... do not cut into the middle n mortally wound the bugger

[Terryz_]

Oh... I see... hehe... A bit cruel though... hehe..

[lvcap]

yah..the usual method LFS mention is cut and let it grow back..but i tot its rather cruel..

thats y i tot of the freeze...then thaw and feed...

its still "fresh" in a sense...no smell of rotting meat..and the shrimps should take loh...this of cos is according to theory..but practical...

who got try before?

the freeze and feed method was inspired by freshwater fish keeping...some experts mention that freezing those feeder fishes and then feeding to luohan or arowana might be safer...can kill parasites in those feeder fishes..

[Terryz_]

Maybe you can try to cut, freeze and feed them with your present starfish...

[lvcap]

whahah

i got zero stars now liao..

all rotting..had to remove from tank to prevent more ammonia..

gota try to buy another one and freeze..

any other means tried by the reefers in here?

i know quite a few pple do keep this beauty...

[ervine]

EEEks... I still cannot stand the thought of feeding the shrimp a starfish...

[FuEl]

Depends on the species of sea stars. They hate eating chocolate chip stars. Avoid blue linkias..they die before they are even consumed 1/5th...

Try sand shifting stars...they tend to be more hardy..and they can stay alive the whole time while harlequins are feeding on them.

[derf]

my harlequin suddenly stopped feeding! but somehow still surviving aft 2 weeks. the star fish seems untouched n i dun see my harlequin eating.

[FuEl]

my harlequin suddenly stopped feeding! but somehow still surviving aft 2 weeks. the star fish seems untouched n i dun see my harlequin eating.

Harlequins usually cease eating after consuming a sea star. A few days after finishing the star if it has no appetite, it normally is a sign that the shrimp is going to moult. After moulting, the harlequin usually waits for a few more days before beginning to feed again.

Hope this answers your question.

[DaY]

FuEl Posted on Dec 31 2003, 11:42 PM

  Depends on the species of sea stars. They hate eating chocolate chip stars. Avoid blue linkias..they die before they are even consumed 1/5th...

Try sand shifting stars...they tend to be more hardy..and they can stay alive the whole time while harlequins are feeding on them. 

Another good thing about feeding them with sand shifter is, it is the cheapest and biggest starfish type that i can find on the market..

only $3/- each compare to $8/-+ for a linkia star.

Anyone can get sand shifter at a lower price? Pls pm me. Spending a fortune on feeding them already..

[FuEl]

Saw some at a shop in marine parade...next to the 7-11 near to the old marine parade library..but $4 each..

From the chek jawa guide book...it seems like sand shifting stars are very common there..

[hamannbmw]

i just dump the linkia into the tanks, hehe buffet style , i had 3 harlequin in my tank....

[lvcap]

I am using sand shifting stars...chepaest mah..

but my 5 shrimps will just kill the poor star instead of eating it alive slowly...

linckia?

too dangerous..i tried once on my 2 feet tank last time..

the whole tank crash..cos it rotted like crazy after 1-2 days...

[Dazza]

well thats the prob with keeping specialised feeders. I find it very troublesome inthe long run. Plus seem a bit cruel.

[jc85]

I read that the shrimp will bring food for the sea star to keep it alive. Anyone observe it?

My bro just got a harlequin shrimp yesterday and some sea star (still trying to figure out wat specie is that), the shrimp is still hiding in my liverocks. Will it be able to locate the sea star by itself?

[kschew1498]

Hi

Would anybody be kind enough to post a pic of this strange shirmp? I went to Liveaquaria.com but the pic of the Harlequin Shrimp is not clear.

By the way where can I get this strange creature? Thanks

jc85....my poor coral band was attacked by yours and it roams my marine tank now....Sob Sob...so sad for my coral band...one pincer drop. Luckily was able to house it in my refugium to recover. Will keep these 2 until I upgrade to a bigger tank...

[siglap]

brilliant shrimp why not cut one hand off the star fish and put the rest into a floating cage. the star will not die and the harlequin will get its food. and i totally disapprove the idea of harvesting from the wild in singapore i think sooner or later there will be none left

[lightningstrike]

my experiences r different. i hv my harlequin shrimp for about 2 mths now....... quite a large guy....... and i hv never fed him any starfishes....... but he's still alive and happy crawling till today.

[jc85]

jc85....my poor coral band was attacked by yours and it roams my marine tank now....Sob Sob...so sad for my coral band...one pincer drop. Luckily was able to house it in my refugium to recover. Will keep these 2 until I upgrade to a bigger tank...

Hi Chew,

Sorry to hear that. Dun worry abt the pincer, they will grow back. I'll suggest that you not put them back together again even you upgraded unless you have something more than 6 ft. I have a 4ft tank and my boxers roam all ard the tank.

Btw, more picture on the harlequin for your reference.

Cheers

[jc85]

my experiences r different. i hv my harlequin shrimp for about 2 mths now....... quite a large guy....... and i hv never fed him any starfishes....... but he's still alive and happy crawling till today.

Any idea wat it feeds on then? The food dropped from your fishes? Read that there is a small chances that they will take prepared food.