Horseshoe Crab?

[scubachris]

I was at the LFS store yesterday and he was selling several horseshow crabs about the size of a quarter. I never saw these before in a lfs. Anyone have these? Reef safe?

 

[natclanwy]

IMO they shouldn't be added to the home aquarium they get way too big for most aquariums. They get over 12" across and 24" long when full grown and most will slowly starve to death in an aquarium. They also can shift rockwork and will eat all of the benifitial fauna out of the sandbed.

 

[renogaw]

some florida species will only get about 5-6" but will still destroy the miicrofauna, sandbed, and rockwork. unless you have a HUGE tank with plenty of sand for them to go in, i'd pass

 

[natclanwy]

Actually there are only four species and all of them can achieve 24" in length:
Tachypleus gigas 2ft
Limulus polyphemus 2ft (Atlantic Species)
Tachypleus tridentatus 2ft
Carcinoscorpius rotundicauda 16" plus tail

 

[renogaw]

i stand corrected... coulda sworn i read somewhere that there was a mini species of horseshoes

 

[saltn00b]

they like to be bulldozers in the sandbed. if your rockwork is not secure , as in it is all glued down, or one solid structure with connecting rods, you will either have a crab-icide or a rockslide (and the potential disasters that can come with that) or both. i have only heard of one person who supposedly kept one for over a year, but never saw it with my own eyes or pics.