Asterina Star

At any given time I can count at least 50 Asterina's on the back glass of my 55. I have what look's like an Asterina except it only has for leg's and is the size of an american dime. Should I pitch it and can the Asterina's cause any problem's. I have heard two sides to them, So are or can they be a problem and what can I do to cut down the population? They are literally everywhere.

 

tweezers from what ive heard. You can also get a harlequin shrimp that only eats starfish Harlequin Shrimp - Facts On The Stunning Harlequin Shrimp but sometimes they wont touch asterinas.

 

You can google search them and find sites that have ID pages. I believe the easiest way to tell if they are coral eaters is by the number of legs but not 100% on that. You have a problem I wish I had...my banded brittle star actively hunts and eats any asterina or micro brittles it finds at night.

 

There is only one species of asterina that is a problem in tanks it is very rarely found in the trade. The rest are part of the CUC.

 

Is it reasonable to believe that my Asterina's are eating Coraline? I'm 95% certain this is happening. My tank is still purpling up nicely but its kinda an annoyance they leave specs of white occasionally when they stay on a certain area for extended periods.