hitchhiker on turbinaria

[aromano]

I picked up a smaller polyp turbinaria as a rescue from my local LFS. It was a frag from a larger colony that had been severely damaged by a neighboring psamacora I believe. Any way I have had it for about six months and always noticed a small hole that i figured was a result of its prior history . The coral is healed around it but it also appeared that a critter might be in it maybe a barnacle . Feeding the corals this morning a piece of krill landed right near the hole . Looks like a microscopic crab is the resident. Way too small to get a pic I needed a magnifying glass just to make him out. He looks to be uniformly tan in color all that shows is front of carapace and two very small claws. no marks no spots cant even see anything looking like eyes. Its maybe a couple of millimeters in size
Any ideas as to what it is?

 

[cloak]

Picture?

http://www.lionfishlair.com/hitchhiker/hitchhiker.shtml

 

[aromano]

never going to get a usable pic way to small dont have a macro lens. ait looks like some type of gall crab. I found some old threads that make me think that's what it is. Now is it symbiont type on turbinaria or parasite.

 

[kurt_n]

I had a little fold/pocket in my turbinaria where a gall crab of some sort took up residence. It appeared years after I put the turbinaria in the tank. I left it alone for 6 months or so, until I realized it appeared to be "mining" out its hole towards the back. I tried flushing it out with a blast of fresh water, but that didn't work. Eventually, a piece of wire pushed back into its "cave" managed to get the sucker.

Personally, I'd get rid of it. Never know the damage it's doing in there.