Pls dont flame me... But I go a question about purple lobsters

kilofey

kilofey

Member
I rrreeeaaalllyyy would like to have one, but ive been reading that they can catch inverts and fish...
I know sometimes food lobsters' claws are removed to prevent damage to other lobsters, could I do this if I got one to prevent harm to my fish/inverts? Not the whole claw, just the hinged "thumb" part of its claws
Pls dont flame me for this question, just helpful info would be greatly appreciated
 
flower

flower

Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kilofey http:///forum/thread/386866/pls-dont-flame-me-but-i-go-a-question-about-purple-lobsters#post_3400160
I rrreeeaaalllyyy would like to have one, but ive been reading that they can catch inverts and fish...
I know sometimes food lobsters' claws are removed to prevent damage to other lobsters, could I do this if I got one to prevent harm to my fish/inverts? Not the whole claw, just the hinged "thumb" part of its claws
Pls dont flame me for this question, just helpful info would be greatly appreciated
Hi,
I have never owned a lobster...so what I am saying is just my logic, so if I'm wrong I hope someone will chime in and correct me.......The lobsters in the store are doomed to be killed and eaten by people. So the critter starving is not an issue. The claws are either removed or strapped to prevent injury to the cook, since they are dumped in the pot alive. A pet lobster in your fish tank needs it's claw to eat and catch its food.
If you rrreeeaaalllyyy want one, set up a small nano tank for it, there is no reason why you can't do what you want to do...... OR .......You can always redo your tank and critters to accommodate what gives you the most joy out of your tank. JMO
 
btldreef

btldreef

Moderator
It really does need its claws to eat and thrive. If you remove the claw, it will just come back in the next molts.
I had one that hitchhiked in on a piece of LR I took from my LFS tank. That sucker went right for my mandarin and shredded his fins. They're beautiful, but not too safe IME.
 
tangs rule

tangs rule

Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by BTLDreef http:///forum/thread/386866/pls-dont-flame-me-but-i-go-a-question-about-purple-lobsters#post_3400225
It really does need its claws to eat and thrive. If you remove the claw, it will just come back in the next molts.
I had one that hitchhiked in on a piece of LR I took from my LFS tank. That sucker went right for my mandarin and shredded his fins. They're beautiful, but not too safe IME.
+1
And even though it's just a crustacean, they can be very hard to catch in a tank with rock & stuff - and after about the 2nd or 3rd time you catch him, break off a part of his big claws, throw him back in - I suspect he'll be even harder to catch him each time cause he'll learn quick not to trust you AT ALL.
 
kilofey

kilofey

Member
I see. Didnt think about them molting & I thought claws were just for defense. Thanks for being informative instead of tearing me down for asking the question lol. No worries, purple lobster will stay out of the tank.... Ill be holding out till I Pp can buy an adequate tank for a mantis lol
 
tangs rule

tangs rule

Active Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kilofey http:///forum/thread/386866/pls-dont-flame-me-but-i-go-a-question-about-purple-lobsters#post_3400277
I see. Didnt think about them molting & I thought claws were just for defense. Thanks for being informative instead of tearing me down for asking the question lol. No worries, purple lobster will stay out of the tank.... Ill be holding out till I Pp can buy an adequate tank for a mantis lol
Now your talking! mantis eat lobsters
and about anything else they can subdue.
 
S

seahorse5

Guest
When I got my aquarium approximately 6 years ago, it contained a flame lobster that had been a hitchhiker on some live rock. It survived several moves and a tank electrocution when a pump went bad killing almost everything in the tank. Just a few days ago, I had another tank electrocution when a heater in my sump went bad, I haven't seen the lobster, and know for sure it took out my LTA, all of my zoas, xenia, mushrooms and snails, and the fish aren't looking so good either, only seemingly unaffected inhabitants are the hermit crabs.
The flame lobster was about 3" long and a beautiful and very peaceful resident in my reef tank, it would come out of the live rock when I fed small pellets, and never harassed any fish or other residents in the tank.
 
btldreef

btldreef

Moderator
What sites claim, and what an actual creature does are two different things. I would not trust one in a reef and I've seen more than one attack a fish, sleeping or awake.
 
kilofey

kilofey

Member
ive decided to stay away from them eventhough id love to have one. Id rather have my corals (so much for a simple fowlr tank!) Ahhh, I love this hobby :rotfl: btw, im picking up a whole bunch of new corals this weekend :eek:} yay! Theyre from a guy on craigslist whom ive bought from before, his frags are really nice & great prices, im excited
 
jburgi

jburgi

Member
My husband wanted a lobster so bad, but the more we learned about them the more we realized that it just wouldn't work for the tank stocking that we wanted. Now we are looking into getting a pistol shrimp instead. They look a lot like a little lobster, but are not so destructive.
 
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