What is burrowing in my open Brain!!?

[LeslieH]

That's not a gall crab opening. OCD is right - gall crabs don't burrow as much as they squat in place & let the coral grow over them. There are numerous possibilities for what it actually is, among them other crustaceans & various worms. I suspect the burrower stays in the calcium layer & doesn't eat/touch the actual flesh of the coral. If the coral stays healthy that's pretty good proof the burrower is not harming it. If you really want it out try pouring seltzer water/club soda into the hole. that seems to flush a lot of hitchhikers out of hiding.

 

[Aquabucket]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11984171#post11984171 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by LeslieH
That's not a gall crab opening. OCD is right - gall crabs don't burrow as much as they squat in place & let the coral grow over them. There are numerous possibilities for what it actually is, among them other crustaceans & various worms. I suspect the burrower stays in the calcium layer & doesn't eat/touch the actual flesh of the coral. If the coral stays healthy that's pretty good proof the burrower is not harming it. If you really want it out try pouring seltzer water/club soda into the hole. that seems to flush a lot of hitchhikers out of hiding.

Maybe what I am finding are different types of crabs but they look just like galls. They are yellowish in appearance and are about 1/2" - 3/4" in size. They always play dead when disturbed as well.

 

[jimroth]

I had one in a favia, there used to be a photo of it on Ron Shimek's site. It stayed for a couple years and then died. The coral healed over the hole within a couple weeks! I used to find its molts sometimes, it was very cool looking, with a flt round head like a piston for blocking the hole.

 

[LeslieH]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11984450#post11984450 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Aquabucket
Maybe what I am finding are different types of crabs but they look just like galls. They are yellowish in appearance and are about 1/2" - 3/4" in size. They always play dead when disturbed as well.

Sounds interesting. If you get more why don't you post an image of one?

 

[FishyMel]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11984542#post11984542 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jimroth
I had one in a favia, there used to be a photo of it on Ron Shimek's site. It stayed for a couple years and then died. The coral healed over the hole within a couple weeks! I used to find its molts sometimes, it was very cool looking, with a flt round head like a piston for blocking the hole.

Yes, I did find something blocking one of its holes, I guess that could of been the crab, I thought it was a rock, but crab makes more sense. I think there are 2 in the coral, I dont care as long as they stay in just that coral and don't kill it.

 

[Aquabucket]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11985634#post11985634 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by LeslieH
Sounds interesting. If you get more why don't you post an image of one?

I'll try next time. The ones I have found come in on corals every once and awhile at an LFS that I frag for. I just always assumed they were a type of gall crab. Their exoskeletons are quite soft for a crab and to me it appeared that they had burrowed into the base of the corals.

 

[organism]

My guess is that it's a boring clam, or possibly had a boring clam in there that died in transit, have you shined a light in there?