Seeing your favorite starfish dying out of nowhere can be heartbreaking for you.
Chocolate chip starfishes are often found dead in the aquarium. But without conventional knowledge, you can’t detect whether it’s dead.
Why is your chocolate chip starfish dying?
Well, there can be many probable reasons behind a starfish dying. Suddenly detaching the starfish from its place can result in death.
Increased nitrate or phosphate level can be another reason. Then bacterial contamination can also cause death.
This knowledge might not be sufficient for you. It would be best if you got a finer understanding to find the emulsions.
On that account, we hope you’ll continue reading to get a better grasp.
Reasons for Your Chocolate Chip Starfish Dying
Well, there are some reasons why your starfish might die or get sick. You need to know them.
That way, it’ll be easy to find out which one your starfish is facing. At the same time, you can take safeguards for the hereafter.
Air Bubble Formation
The first thing is you should avoid picking up your starfish and disclosing it to the air. The reason is starfish drive seawater into their vascular system.
The vascular system is called the respiratory system in vertebrates.
By any chance, if an air bubble becomes pindown in the vascular system, that creates a problem. As a result, the starfish can become disabled and may ultimately die.
So, if you separate the starfish from the water too quickly, an air bubble may form. By doing that, you increase the possibility of killing your pet.
Bacterial Infections
The Chocolate Chip is unlatched to bacterial infections. Hence, they’re frequently distinguished by abnormal spots and lesions.
And the consequence might be death. So, water is very important for your starfish.
Your chocolate chip requires superb water quality. Maintain the nitrate levels in the tank as much as possible.
If it’s too elevated, your starfish won’t survive. You can test that using a good nitrate test kit.
If the test indicates high levels, they’ll grow bacterial infections.
Curled Arms
Well, usually, you will see a number of the arms of the starfish curled back. It’s their normal position when they sit on the glass.
They curl back their arms to grab debris or algae film. This is an indication of poor water quality.
So, you need to check the oxygen levels, pH, and salinity consistency regularly. If these are not at a proper level, your starfish might die.
How to Take Care of Your Starfish? – A Complete Guide
So, if you don’t want your starfish to die, take proper care of them. These things will keep your pet healthy.
If you’re petting a chocolate chip starfish, you should keep some factors in mind:
Aquarium Size
You need at least a 30-gallon tank for Chocolate Chip Starfish. You should know that these creatures tend to grow to about 15 inches (38 cm).
So you’ll need a very large marine aquarium to put one in.
Water Conditions
Chocolate Chip Starfish needs to be accommodated in your aquarium. Even though they’re muscular creatures, they need proper care.
They’re extremely delicate to changes in water parameters. Their vascular system imitates the water surrounding them.
Any immediate changes in pH, salinity and oxygen put undue stress on their systems.
So, you should drip-adjust them. Adjust them for at least an hour before placing them in their new home.
They definitely shouldn’t just be put right into a new tank because that would be extremely hazardous for them.
Continue changing the water weekly to keep your tank clean. Starfish don’t fare well in elevated levels of ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. This makes them more susceptible to disease.
The ideal parameters for Chocolate Chip Starfish are:
- pH levels: 8.1 – 8.4
- Water hardness: 8 – 12° dKH
- Water temperature: 72°F – 80°F (22°C – 27°C)
You can control the water temperature by getting a high-quality heater!
Tank Mates
The Chocolate Chip starfish is one of the calmest and most peaceful sea creatures. So, it would be best if you did not keep predatory fish with chocolate chip starfish.
Predatory fishes like Boxfish, Pufferfish, and Triggerfish can harm them. These hostile fish can kill your sea stars.
Even hermit crabs should not be kept with Chocolate Chip Starfish because they are familiar with pulling the black spines right off the starfish. They can even eat starfish legs!
Again, chocolate chip starfish should not be kept with coral. These coral include pulsing xenia, sponges, and smaller invertebrates like clams and tubeworms.
Fish that you can keep with Chocolate Chip Sea Stars are Angelfish, Anthias, Butterflies fish, Clownfish, Dwarf Angelfish, and Tangs.
Diet
Chocolate Chip Starfish are meat-eating fishes. But they can ingest some plant detritus and algae.
Also, you can provide them with chopped clams, shellfish, shrimp, and squid. You might be confused about choosing between mysis and brine shrimp. Remember, starfish are not that picky.
So, you shouldn’t just put food in the tank and presume they’ll get to it. In this case, any fish in your tank will win the food competition. And at the end, you’ll see your sea star go without food.
Therefore, we propose placing the food next to your chocolate chip with tongs because chocolate chips extract their stomachs to grab their food.
So, they will hover over the food and suck it up. Chocolate chip starfish feast on coral and other small invertebrates. So you’ll need to be alert in choosing your tank community.
Medical Care For Parasites
Any medication with copper is toxic to starfish. At the same time, they cannot tolerate anti-parasitic medications. So, you should choose copper-free treatments.
If you’ve to handle your other fish with an anti-parasitic, move them to a separate quarantine tank.
That’s all you’ve got to do. Hopefully, you won’t have any more complaints about Chocolate chip starfish dying.
FAQs
Question: Can you touch your chocolate chip starfish?
Answer: Well, yes, you can touch them. But be sure you’re not causing them any damage while handling them. Also, don’t retain them out of water for a lengthy period.
Question: What is the lifespan of your chocolate chip starfish?
Answer: The anticipated lifespan of the chocolate chip starfish is up to 20 years.
Even though the median lifespan of captive specimens turns on the correct conditions and diet.
Question: How frequently do chocolate chip starfish eat?
Answer: Most of the time, they feed themselves. Also, they can eat all the algae in the tank. You can feed them some meaty food once every 1-2 weeks.
Conclusion
Now, you’ve all the information about your chocolate chip starfish dying. You’ve got the solutions as well.
So, supply your starfish with the correct water parameters and feed it an accurate diet. As a result, your cute pet could provide you up to 20 years of enjoyment.