Please help ID this Crab

[Ghxst]

This lil bugger was living inside of a fungia. I have looked for an ID with no luck. It is 4mm in width. Pic was taken through a dissecting scope.

Thank you for the help!

 

[Calappidae]

Looks like a gall crab.

 

[Sugar Magnolia]

Yep, gall crab.

 

[Ghxst]

Wow, that thing looks nasty! I have videos, pictures and the crab still alive in a bag floating to help ID. It doesn't exactly match up although similar from a top down shot. I did take off most its off its legs on one side on accident when removing him. That picture is under a 30x scope and he cant be more than 4mm. The shell pattern, symmetry and color is my biggest reason why I don't think its a gall. That and seeing the underside under the scope it doesn't look the same, but I could totally be wrong.

Is there a good invert ID source with taxa info and sketches available?

 

[Ghxst]

Oh and Thank you for the quick feed back! I got panicky looking at those gall crab pics!

I just pulled a couple of papers looking into your suggestion and I am wrong! It could totally be a type of gall crab! I freaked out when I saw the one the other Reefcentral post had. Those things were crazy ugly! So a gall crab is in a group of crabs that can host a corals "galls" I will figure this one out, if anyone has a good tip on a book or source to identify I would be indebted. Thanks!!

 

[Betta132]

I'd suggest putting it back if it turns out to be a gall crab, since they seem to be pretty harmless. They're actually kinda cool, and it's just a little upside-down crab, he's not that freaky.

 

[Ghxst]

He is cool and I would like so save em. I would need an ID, is there any invert specialist I can PM here? My universities invert specialist is in costa rica.

 

[Ghxst]

It is still alive, been doing water changes and feeding in a ziploc bag in the sump. Anyone know what kind it is? It is smooth shelled but does have cute little jagged legs. I was told a fungia I got had a vertid snail and I have one like that so I was like cool whatever but it was the lil crab. I got some harder to keep corals at the same time and its all doing great along with my other 70 some corals and my other fungia but the plate with the crab slowly fell apart. Any external resources for micro-invert ids would be helpful as well, I would like to figure out what it is.

 

[Calappidae]

I'm pretty positive it is a gall crab. They are just really weird looking.

My main source for IDs is chuck's addictions, however for the most part it's just memorization from past threads and research.

 

[Ghxst]

So im guessing there's no book on invert ids huh?