Probs Blue legged crabs

[ken s]

I guess i jumped the gun. i bought a tank then filled it with salt water. After the dust settled and i got all the test in order i bought 45 pounds of live rock, then let it cycle. after the ammonia and nitrites was zero i added 2 damsels and 8 blue legged crabs. the live rock had fresh bright green new growth and purple stuff growing on it. it was beautiful, to me anyway. well now the question. what was it because the crabs ate it all? the live rock looks like the rock in my driveway, gray and bare. the crabs have been removed.
thanks for any help <img src="graemlins//confused.gif" border="0" alt="[confused]" />

 

[kris walker]

small headache? That's great, mine were huge at that time!
Anyway, I have never heard of blue-legged hermits eating algae. So I really don't know why they ate it all. Did you actually see them eating it? Or are you assuming so because now all that growth is gone? But in any case, I think you made a good move taking out the hermits. They are not necessary in a reef tank, and in my opinion, can be more of a trouble than what they are worth as part of a cleaner crew for a reef. For a cleaner crew, I have 2 brittle stars, 3 peppermint shrimp (and several growing babies), and about 12 snails (Austrea and Turbo). Copepods also help with the cleaning. Together, this crew likes each other and have been doing a great job so far.
cheers,
kris

 

[predator]

Between me smashing some with a hammer and slinging them into the nieghbors yard I only have 2 hermits left in my tank. I hate the little hell spawns!!! Some people have great luck with them. I however am not one of those people. They reeked havoc in my tank from day 1 and kept right on going.
It is possiable that they ate your algea(but anything is possiable in a reef). But then again it is possiable that you cycle could have killed it. Either way Kris is right. It's probably for the better you got them out.

 

[crazyelvis]

At the end of my cycle , my LR looked grey or white ... Soon after the coralline took off and the rock went back to normal...I think it's just normal die off..
I have several blue legs , and I think you would need hundreds of them to clean off your live rock...
I doubt they had much to do with your problem...