⭐ Sand Sifting Sea Star (Astropecten polycanthus)
A Banded Brown-and-Beige Body Covered in Short Spines • A Nocturnal Burrower That Turns Over Substrate as It Hunts • A Powerful Sandbed Processor for a Large, Established Tank
 
📋 The Sand Sifting Sea Star is a nocturnally active marine echinoderm known for burrowing through and turning over large amounts of substrate as it hunts for food, with an attractive banded pattern of brown and beige across its thick, spine-covered arms.
It comes from sandy lagoons and reef flats across the Indo-Pacific, including Fiji and the Solomon Islands, spending most of its time beneath the sand, surfacing to actively forage, particularly at night. Every Sand Sifting Sea Star we ship is feeding well.
This is a voracious, opportunistic predator, and a real powerhouse at processing a sand bed; it will consume detritus and leftover food, but also beneficial microfauna like worms, copepods, and small brittle stars, along with small shrimp, snails, clams, urchins, and even other starfish. We recommend it only for a large, mature system with an extensive, established sand bed, at least six months in, along with a a commitment to ongoing supplemental feeding, since this species can work through a smaller tank's natural food supply faster than it can be replenished. It won't touch corals directly. It reaches up to 30cm, so a 380L tank with an extensive, mature sand bed suits it well.
 
💡 Highlights
🏖️ Powerful Sandbed Processor: Actively burrows through and turns over large volumes of substrate
🦐 Will Eat Small Invertebrates: Shrimp, snails, clams, urchins, and other starfish are all at risk
🌙 Nocturnal Activity: Most active foraging happens after dark
🧠 For a Large, Mature Tank: Needs an extensive, established sand bed and ongoing supplemental feeding
🌿 Won't Harm Corals: Its impact is on the sand bed's ecosystem, not coral tissue