Hawai'ian Zebra Hermits

[viper_930]

Has anyone baught some from here? Are they any good? Reef-safe?

 

[007]

Reef safe . . . yes. Good . . . depends for what. I started with a dozen in my tank and now after 18 months there are two left.
I have to admit when it comes to "cleaning" they are relative useless. They don't eat microalgaes such as hair algae. They will eat coralline though, which is actually very helpful in spreading it in the tank.
They are definitely my favorite hermits though. They are hilarious to watch when the tank gets fed. They move faster than any other hermit in the tank thats for sure.

 

[viper_930]

How does them eating the coralline help it spread?
Are there any other hermits that clean well, and cool to watch? The blue legs are aggressive towards other invert, right?

 

[007]

by eating it they release the spores into the water column, hense helping it spread.
Scarlets are great cleaners, not as entertaining, but much better cleaners.

 

[kpatrick]

Have a couple dozen zebras in my tank and they are fun to watch (as mentioned above) especially during feeding time. They are always active but dont seem to keep the tank clean. I would recommend them for any tank but dont count on them to keep it clean.

 

[808smokey]

Originally posted by 007
by eating it they release the spores into the water column, hense helping it spread.
Would it make sense then to scrape/scratch the coraline on the rock to release it into the water to help spread it :notsure:

 

[ekclark]

I get my coraline to spread by pointing a ph at a rock and scraping it off the glass.
the zebras are cool hermits...but they don't live very long. I have just a few left and they are big and cool looking. I hope they are teaching myt bluelegs some humility, but I haven't ever seen it.

 

[tahoe ocean]

I had one big HI. Zebra Hermit in the tank for a couple years, but he became a "toddler". His rule was: If I catch it, it's mine. If I want it in my mouth, it will go there. He was banished to my brother's tank and still lives happily. He eats whatever he can catch, steal, or scrounge. And he's now rather large. :hilarious