straightnewbies
New Member
He came in the crevice of some live rock from my lfs and is pretty big. Please help me identify, any help would be great thanks!
Help Us Identify This Hichthiker Crab!
- Thread starter straightnewbies
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snakeblitz33
Well-Known Member
Actually, crabs are crustaceans and decapods... which mean they all have ten legs, regardless if they are "good" or "bad" for our tanks.
My general rule of thumb when it comes to crabs is if I can't get a proper ID on it (with a known aquarium hobby crab, such as mythrax) I'll toss it. The other rule of thumb for me is that if it has sharp pointy claws, it is most likely a predator. Dull claws are better for herbivores to pick algae.
In any case... great pictures!
My general rule of thumb when it comes to crabs is if I can't get a proper ID on it (with a known aquarium hobby crab, such as mythrax) I'll toss it. The other rule of thumb for me is that if it has sharp pointy claws, it is most likely a predator. Dull claws are better for herbivores to pick algae.
In any case... great pictures!
ak_reefer
Member
Hey Snake now Im curious so are the pinchers considered legs? I said 8 walking legs(and sharp pointed claws I forgot to add that) because as a rule they are usually more destructive as apposed to a Porcelain crab which has 6 walking legs.
So is Porcelain crab not a true crab?
Thanks.
Sent From my Frontal Lobes via TapaTalk!!
So is Porcelain crab not a true crab?
Thanks.
Sent From my Frontal Lobes via TapaTalk!!
snakeblitz33
Well-Known Member
Porcelain crabs are still decapods.
bang guy
Moderator
You're both right. Porcelain Crabs are Decapods but are not true Crabs.
They do have a 5th pair of legs! Look closely just past the last pair of walking legs and you can see two legs that are normally tucked up against the carapace. They use those small legs to clean under their tail and care for the eggs before they hatch.
They do have a 5th pair of legs! Look closely just past the last pair of walking legs and you can see two legs that are normally tucked up against the carapace. They use those small legs to clean under their tail and care for the eggs before they hatch.
straightnewbies
New Member
thanks everyone! so he's an unwelcome guest and we will deal with it! appreciate the speed reply and info!
bang guy
Moderator
Yeah, if your Crab came in on come Acropora then it's a good chance it would be a Commensal Crab of some type. The fact that it was living in your rock in a good indication that it's a young predatory Crab.
It might be cool to set up a small species tank for it. They are very easy to care for.
It might be cool to set up a small species tank for it. They are very easy to care for.
straightnewbies
New Member
so reading your thing, i noticed something? weve been told not to change water during cycling, which is only about 4 days in as we just finished adding live rock then. should we be doing changes? If so, how often? 25gal cube with 25lbs of lr, soonish to be a reef tank!
bang guy
Moderator
There are 100 ways to successfully do a tank cycle. In my experience, doing water changes during the cycle has worked the best for me.
I suggest doing a 20% water change whenever ammonia exceeds 0.5ppm. That may mean a water change every day for a week or so, sometimes even more than one water change in a day to keep the ammonia below 0.5ppm. The idea isn't to eliminate all ammonia, just keep it at a level tolerable for most of the animals living in your live rock.
I suggest doing a 20% water change whenever ammonia exceeds 0.5ppm. That may mean a water change every day for a week or so, sometimes even more than one water change in a day to keep the ammonia below 0.5ppm. The idea isn't to eliminate all ammonia, just keep it at a level tolerable for most of the animals living in your live rock.