Protoreaster nodosus Breeding Guide: Chocolate Chip Star
The chocolate chip sea star is a large broadcast-spawning asteroid whose planktonic larval cycle is not reproduced in home aquaria.
Overview
Protoreaster nodosus, the chocolate chip or horned sea star, was described by Linnaeus in 1758 and belongs to the family Oreasteridae. It lives in warm, shallow Indo-Pacific waters from Thailand to Samoa and Japan to New Caledonia, grows up to about 30 cm across, and bears a single radial row of black conical horns on the dorsal side. It is an opportunistic carnivore that preys on most sessile life, including hard corals and sponges in aquaria.
Reproductive Mode
As a member of the class Asteroidea, Protoreaster nodosus is a gonochoric broadcast spawner. Detailed species-specific spawning data are limited, so its reproduction is described using the general starfish pattern.
Sexual Reproduction
Eggs and sperm are released into the water in free spawning, and the embryos and larvae develop as plankton. Larvae pass through bilaterally symmetrical bipinnaria and brachiolaria stages before settling and metamorphosing into pentaradial juveniles. Wild populations are heavily affected by overharvesting for the sea-shell trade.
Common Challenges
The planktonic larval cycle cannot be completed in home aquaria, which lack the open-water dispersal and larval microfood required. No asexual reproduction is documented for this species. Note also that it is not reef safe, eating sponges, soft corals and clams, and is best kept in FOWLR systems.