Starfish exposed to air?

[DREUTZ]

So I bought a banded serpent starfish that of course I did not plan on buying before I went into the LFS. Sure enough I walked out of there with one, but when the LFS guy was putting it in a bag he took it out of the water. I was under the impression that they cannot be exposed to air and liveaquaria also states that fact for some however I can't exactly find the one I got. The LFS guy that has told me less than true information in the past assured me that the only thing that can't be taken out of water are sponges. Is this starfish going to have issues/die?

 

[Reeftanker3295]

I have taken plenty of sea stars out of the water and they are fine I don't see why it would be a problem.

 

[Imbarrie]

Parts of mine crawl out of the water sometimes.

 

[DREUTZ]

ok.... the freak out was because of this statement:

"Like other invertebrates, the Fancy Tiger-Striped Serpent Sea Star is very intolerant of sudden changes in oxygen levels ..... Sea Star should never be exposed to air while handling."

http://liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=497+528+735&pcatid=735

 

[Breakin Newz]

Never had a problem with exposing starfish to air, had 2 linkia starfish that have been exposed to air and have been living till this day which is about 2 years..

 

[Imbarrie]

I read that also, and when I was acclimating mine I was constantly concerned about that. They also say dont touch them, but mine reach out and wrap around my fingers. Especially the black brittlestar.
Not sure why they are saying that but probably good not to expose them too much.

 

[batt600]

your confusing that with a clam. clams cant be exposed to air

 

[beerfish]

your confusing that with a clam. clams cant be exposed to air

That's also incorrect:

"Tridacna clams are usually limited to shallow water where they'll receive the most light. Some are found in water shallow enough that the clam is exposed to air during low tide. T. gigas can be found as deep as 66 feet (20 meters). T. tevoroa is only found in deep water."

Excerpt from http://animal-world.com/encyclo/reef/clams/tridacna.htm

 

[DREUTZ]

your confusing that with a clam. clams cant be exposed to air

Live Aquaria is confusing it! I assumed they would have accurate info on their site.... is there another site where you can look up pretty much any coral, fish, invert etc for info? One that is as easy to navigate as LA maybe?

 

[batt600]

Hold on when you buy clams they tell you not to exspose them to air and to burp them to get the air pockets out.

 

[marrone]

Live Aquaria is confusing it! I assumed they would have accurate info on their site.... is there another site where you can look up pretty much any coral, fish, invert etc for info? One that is as easy to navigate as LA maybe?

You need to be careful using information from places that sell, as after all they're in business to sell what they offer on their web site. So even though LA may have a lot of good information you should try and verify it with other places or people that have the item.

 

[beerfish]

Hold on when you buy clams they tell you not to exspose them to air and to burp them to get the air pockets out.

Who is "they"?

 

[batt600]

Who is "they"?

The LFS and vendors

 

[beerfish]

I haven't read this in a few years, but don't recall reading anything about that:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/0978619404/?tag=reefs04-20

If you are interested in getting a clam, buy this book first.

 

[E.intheC]

you're not supposed to let stars or clams get out of water. Air can cause problems. It's not a death sentence, but it's always a good idea to keep them in the water.

 

[beerfish]

Where are you guys getting this information? If I remember correctly, breeders often remove clams from water for periods of time to induce spawning.

No aquatic animal should really be out of water for extended periods of time, but it's generally not a huge issue.

 

[rookie07]

never had problems with clams or stars being out of water.
ie Have you ever gotten a mini brittle star in live rock or coral? Was that rock ever exposed to air?

 

[tynman]

You can expose clams to air also.. You just have to shake him in your tank a little before you put him down cause you dont want him to have any air bubbles trapped inside of him cause thats what kills them.

 

[TRIGGERMAN]

Interesting..I'm noy an expert by any means and I'm not going to claim to be BUT I'm pretty sure starfish are hardy and can tolerate air..if you find them on the beach and pick them up they are fine..not to mention what about..I duno EVERY SINGLE aquarium/zoo that has a "touch tank". What is the #1 thing they have in their EVERY time..starfish. I would think that if they were really that sensitive and couldn't be out of water they wouldn't have random people putting their dirty hands all over them and taking them out of the water 10,000 times A DAY.

I wouldn't sweat it Dreutzter

 

[DREUTZ]

Well a day later, I can see his legs sticking out of a rock and it doesn't look any different. I"ll get back with any updates... Regardless of if you can or cannot expose them to air, it looks like I gotta cross reference my info from now on.