Pix & ID: Critters that come in your rocks: the good and the bad.

Hitchhiker Question

Hitchhiker Question

I found a couple hitch hikers that came in on my LR. The first is a narcissus (sp?) snail, which should be fine. The other I'm 99% sure is an emerald crab. I've gone through this thread and checked out the crab ID info, so I'm pretty confident I've ID'd him correctly... but I've attached a pic just in case.

My question is this: many folks have warned against any crab other than hermits being in a reef set up. Do you think it's ok to leave him, or should I try to fish him out? Tank is still cycling, but it will eventually be home to softies, a few LPS, and some fish friends.

Thoughts??

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I can't get the pics to open. Easiest way to tell if it's a true "emerald" is if it has red in the elbow joints of its main claws, like this.
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As for whether to keep it or not, that's personal preference. Most people who say they're evil don't feed them/expect them to find food on their own, then don't like the "food" they choose LOL. I've had 4 emeralds in my 55 softy/LPS tank that were well-fed & never hurt a thing.
 
Let's see if I can try the pics again. He's hiding right now, so I can't tell if there is any red in his joints. One claw has an obvious white tip, and he is definitely green with hairy looking legs.
 

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SushiGirl, you ROCK!

Crab is out of hiding, and indeed, he does have some red markings in the area you described. So now I'm 100% convinced that he is an emerald, and I'll keep him happy and well-fed. :D

Question: should I put something in there for him to eat while the tank finishes its cycle? He seems to be pretty happy grazing on the LR so far...
 
Sorry in advance for the bad pic. I found this on one of my rocks. It is about 1/8 inch long and neon green. It appears to have a fan coming out the one end. Any ideas?
IMG_5233.jpg
 
mlott, google pineapple sponge.
Deb, you can try Hikari Crab Cuisine (or any other larger size pellets) or even small pieces of sheet algae.
 
ArrowCrab, it's a ball anemone. Some people say they aren't that bad, but they have infested my tank badly, I mean at least 30 (probably more) in my 55. They irritate the crap out of my zoas. I tried injecting with lemon juice, kalk slurry, and finally white vinegar. The vinegar is working, so I've been after them once a week. I'm going to start hunting them at night when they are really extended.
 
TheKman, just a regular featherduster & could be hair algae. Are they both on the same shell? Either way you can scrub the algae off with a clean toothbrush in some tank water in a bowl & rinse it off really well in the tank water.
 
ArrowCrab, it's a ball anemone. Some people say they aren't that bad, but they have infested my tank badly, I mean at least 30 (probably more) in my 55. They irritate the crap out of my zoas. I tried injecting with lemon juice, kalk slurry, and finally white vinegar. The vinegar is working, so I've been after them once a week. I'm going to start hunting them at night when they are really extended.


Hmm, I kind of have half a mind to leave it and see how things go. My tank is very new and I wasn't planning on getting anything but fish for a few months, but a free hitchiker anemone... Are they aggressive towards only corals or fish and inverts also? Would my clownfish host if I left it there and it got big enough? If I put it in my sump would it stay there or spread to the DT? Sorry to bombard you with questions! :)
 
It won't get large enough to host clownfish & they're not a true anemone but Pseudocorynactis, more related to mushrooms. If you could manage to remove it you could put it in the sump, but like aiptasia, any piece you don't get will grow another. They don't sting as bad as aiptasia or majano, but they do sting. My zoas hate them & will not open then wither away because they're closed & don't get any light. I cringe every time I hear someone say to leave them because they won't spread simply because I know first hand just how much of a plague they can be LOL. I started with one that I missed on a frag I got from someone local, and I decided one wouldn't hurt based on people saying that. That was a little over a year ago, and after looking last night after the lights went out I realized that I have much more than my last guess of 30. 2 months ago I counted 25 that I could see & that was with the lights on & only in the front of the tank.

My understanding is that this is the only way they reproduce, so if that's the case they wouldn't manage to get from the sump to the DT through the plumbing...well, unless they get through your pump because they do move around. Not sure what would happen if the pump chopped it up.

I just went through some pics I took the other night & got a pic of one spreading to create another. There are actually 4 in this pic.
7532614990_e3ce814552_o.jpg
 
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TheKman, just a regular featherduster & could be hair algae. Are they both on the same shell? Either way you can scrub the algae off with a clean toothbrush in some tank water in a bowl & rinse it off really well in the tank water.


I will do that tomorrow when i get off of work in the afternoon & yes their are 2 feather dusters on that same shell.
 
It won't get large enough to host clownfish & they're not a true anemone but Pseudocorynactis, more related to mushrooms. If you could manage to remove it you could put it in the sump, but like aiptasia, any piece you don't get will grow another. They don't sting as bad as aiptasia or majano, but they do sting. My zoas hate them & will not open then wither away because they're closed & don't get any light. I cringe every time I hear someone say to leave them because they won't spread simply because I know first hand just how much of a plague they can be LOL. I started with one that I missed on a frag I got from someone local, and I decided one wouldn't hurt based on people saying that. That was a little over a year ago, and after looking last night after the lights went out I realized that I have much more than my last guess of 30. 2 months ago I counted 25 that I could see & that was with the lights on & only in the front of the tank.

My understanding is that this is the only way they reproduce, so if that's the case they wouldn't manage to get from the sump to the DT through the plumbing...well, unless they get through your pump because they do move around. Not sure what would happen if the pump chopped it up.

I just went through some pics I took the other night & got a pic of one spreading to create another. There are actually 4 in this pic.
7532614990_e3ce814552_o.jpg


Ah well, off to the sump it goes I guess. Thanks for the info!
 
Kman, just be careful to not break the featherduster tubes if they have them, though all the ones I've had like that were always coming out of holes in the rock.

ArrowCrab, sorry it wasn't better news. Let us know how many you have later LOL.
 
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