nasotang00
Member
This guy is only about the size of a quarter but man was it hard getting this guy out.
Finally got that hitchhiker crab, have you seen one like this??
- Thread starter nasotang00
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I
irenicus
Guest
I caught a Hitchickers like that a year ago. Tagged a fish and shrimp.
ags
Member
This type of crab is very common in gulf rock and is not safe in your aquarium. There are many horror stories from members of this board of these crabs eating turbos right out of the shell to finding where larger fish sleep and eating them alive. I personally have taken two out of my tank and was fortunate enough not to lose anything but have a friend who lost most of his clean up crew and a couple fish. Florida gulf rock is beautiful and cheap but its main draw back are these crabs.
jonthefb
Active Member
yees those are mean little
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! i agree that Fl live rock is gorgeous, but these guys are a pretty nasty littel drawback!
maybe putting him in a tank with a mantis srimp would be an interestign fight. i personally would put my money on the mantis, hey maybe we could get it broadcasted on HBo or something.!
good luck
jon
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! i agree that Fl live rock is gorgeous, but these guys are a pretty nasty littel drawback!
maybe putting him in a tank with a mantis srimp would be an interestign fight. i personally would put my money on the mantis, hey maybe we could get it broadcasted on HBo or something.!
good luck
jon
nasotang00
Member
The reason behind the one claw is that while baiting him with raw shrimp on a stick, I was actually able to grab him by the "missing" claw with a set of medical clamps. I pulled and pulled but that SOB would not release his grip from the rock. in the end, he won that 1st battle but lost his arm.
The second battle, I pinned him down against a rock and when I went in with the clamps again, one end went straight through his shell. Lets say, I won that battle.
Cheers
The second battle, I pinned him down against a rock and when I went in with the clamps again, one end went straight through his shell. Lets say, I won that battle.
Cheers
striker
Member
I have a hitcher crab from my gulf rock that looks just like the one in the pic except that both its claws are the same size. I've had him for over 5 months with no problems. I'm very skeptical when it comes to removing creatures from my tank just because they hitched. I've heard horror stories of urchins and how they tear up coraline and knock everything over but I have two and there have been no problems for six months now. Diversity is important in a reef tank and until I encounter any problems with hitchers I will continue to welcome them with open arms.
donkeykong
Member
wait till you get a good sized mantis..then we will see where those wide open arms are, probably around its little neck.
kpogue
Member
I agree - just because it is a "hitch hiker" doesn't mean it's bad. DUH! (yes, I'm in a mood). I have had many a hitcher some good some bad. When I discover them, I observe their behavior and act accordingly. It doesn't take a genius to figure out when you have a crab (like above) ripping apart a hammer coral it needs to go!
darkrose
New Member
Originally posted by nasotang00
The reason behind the one claw is that while baiting him with raw shrimp on a stick, I was actually able to grab him by the "missing" claw with a set of medical clamps. I pulled and pulled but that SOB would not release his grip from the rock. in the end, he won that 1st battle but lost his arm.
The second battle, I pinned him down against a rock and when I went in with the clamps again, one end went straight through his shell. Lets say, I won that battle.
Cheers
Heh. I figured something like that happened. I would definately say that is a gorilla crab, especially if it came off of gulf rock.. There's probably some other name for it, but I've only heard of them referred to as "gorilla crabs". *shrug*
ags
Member
Sorry about the cheap comment. I guess I forget that I live right down the street from the distributor and don't deal with shipping charges. Compared to buying LR at my LFS it is cheap. Besides a lot of LFS carry the gulf rock and get it from the same place then mark it up and sell it. And everything in this hobby with regards to price is relative. There is nothing cheap about maintaining a reef tank.