Thinking About a Squat Lobster

[Tennyson]

I saw the Crinoid Squat lobster on divers den on liveaquaria and thought they looked pretty cool.

I would like to get one but had a few questions.

1. Are they reef safe?
2. How big does this kind get or any kind in general?
3. Do they host corals or just hang around the rocks or crevices?
4. Are they aggressive-enough to kill fish or small shrimp? territorial?
5. What will they eat?

thanks

 

[Tennyson]

Anyone?

And do these also host corals or gorgonians?

 

[Tayler]

as there name implies they host crinoid starfish wich have dismal survivor rates in captivity. they get up to about an inch and i doubt they will harm anything since there so small.other than that i no nothing else about them.

 

[Tennyson]

Does anyone else know anything about them? The questions above?

 

[plateboy3293]

Squat lobsters are decapod crustaceans of the families Galatheidae and Chirostylidae, including the common genera Galathea and Munida. They are not lobsters at all, but are more closely related to porcelain crabs, hermit crabs and then, more distantly, true crabs.

They are also much smaller than lobsters that can be legally harvested. For example, Munida rugosa has a maximum body length of 10 cm with abdomen extended [1], and the striated squat lobster Galathea australiensis has a carapace that reaches 15 cm in length [2].

Flesh from these animals is often commercially sold in restaurants as "langostino lobster," or sometimes called merely "lobster" when incorporated in seafood dishes (although both uses are considered by some to be ethically dubious), which highly upsets the Maine lobster industry [3].

The body of a squat lobster is usually flattened, the abdomen is typically folded under itself, and the first pereiopods (front legs) are greatly elongated and armed with long chelae (claws). The fifth pair of pereiopods is usually hidden within the gill chamber, under the carapace, giving squat lobsters the appearance of having only eight pereiopods.

It was long assumed that squat lobsters hide in crevices and catch prey with their long claws. However, recent observations showed the animals to wait on the tops of Lophelia coral reefs and catch fish swimming past. Here I just got this on google took me a sec.

 

[Tennyson]

What key words did you type in. I researched on google as well, but didn't find that much info.

Thanks

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12386729#post12386729 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Tennyson
What key words did you type in. I researched on google as well, but didn't find that much info.

Thanks

use scientific names

 

[plateboy3293]

squat lobster