Chocolate Chip Sea Star

I have been having problems with my chocolate chip starfish for a couple of days. He began by curling its legs up almost so they touched each other. I read that this is most likely due to poor diet so I put him into my quarantine tank and gave him some basic pellet food, algae wafers and defrosted shrimp. It looked as though he was eating and doing better then I noticed today that he had white patches on his leg that I couldnt see well. I flipped him over and this is what I saw. What is wrong with him is it going to die. Current water parameters are SG 1.025, Nitrates >10 Nitrites 0 pH 8.4 Ammonia 0 tem 77.8

 

looks like he might be fading fast do you know if he has been eating? there proably isnt enough food in your Q tank for him i had one for a year and a half tille he started munching on my zoas but never ate anything except algae.

 

I always flip them on their backs once I introduce them into my tank to make sure there is no air inside them. Are the other tank mates doing great? Your water looks good. the nitrates aren't high but if there is any nitrates in the water, the starfish might respond to it in a bad way.

 

It sounds like your starfish has some sort of disease problem, most likely caused by what ever he ate. However, Im not sure how to help it though, I hope everything turns out well. Good Luck!

 

Like was stated previously these stars do not tolerate Nitrates very well so this could be the problem. Also keep in mind that the Chocolate Chip Sea Star is only appropriate for very large aquariums since it can grow up to 15 inches in diameter and they are not reef safe. They will eat soft corals,clams,tubeworms, and other starfish. Being a predator they do not eat algae and there diet should consist of meaty foods like Clam,Shrimp, or Squid. The one pictured looks pretty rough to me. You want to be carefull NOT to expose these stars to the air.Also, the Chocolate Chip Sea Star must not be exposed to any copper-based medications and avoid contact with a majority of anti-parasitic medications.
IMO most starfish belong in the ocean and do not do very well in captivity(there are exceptions). Brittle stars are much better choices but can knock things over on occasion. Good luck with it.

 

The spots on it definitely doesnt look good. While I havent personally had a CCSF I had read (depending on the tank) that they need to be target fed regularlly unless there is a mature tank with feeding options. I have also read that while CCSF are hardy they are still a starfish & a common trait is once they start to head downhill they dont fair well unfortunately.

 

To be honest Ive had several stars and once this happens its normally not a good sign. If you have only had it a short time and your water is good return it and get a different one