Brittle star

Care at a glance

Brittle stars have a small, round disc with five long, flexible arms that snake between the rocks. Unlike starfish they use those arms to move actively, and they can be surprisingly fast doing so.

They are excellent clean-up crew: hidden under rock by day, active at night in search of leftover food and detritus. They are peaceful and safe with corals; most species leave fish alone too, although their size makes them vulnerable to a shortage of food in an over-clean tank.

Good to know

• Active at night

Best not combined with

• Harlequin shrimpHymenocera picta

Related species

• Green brittle starOphiarachna incrassata
• Sand sifting starfishAstropecten polyacanthus
• Feather duster wormSabellastarte spectabilis
• Tuxedo urchinMespilia globulus
• Porcelain anemone crabNeopetrolisthes maculatus
• Social feather dusterBispira brunnea