Curious

[Reef-Emperor]

Hey Everyone,

I'm just curious what will eat "bubble algae" and of course not destory the contents of the tank?

Thanks Much!

[blindskater02]

Emerald crabs eat bubble algae

[musicawal]

Emeralds are known to eat bubble algae on occasion, not all the time. They have also been known to eat a coral here or there. I currently have one and he nor the last 2 I've had ate any bubble algae. Now I'm not saying it's not worth a shot and that they never do just that there not a sure thing. Good luck.

[shred5]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9901227#post9901227 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by musicawal
Emeralds are known to eat bubble algae on occasion, not all the time. They have also been known to eat a coral here or there. I currently have one and he nor the last 2 I've had ate any bubble algae. Now I'm not saying it's not worth a shot and that they never do just that there not a sure thing. Good luck.

I agree emeralds are hit or miss and I have also seem them go after coral. There are no fish that eat it that would go into a nano. Honestly the best way i know of is remove them manually and it is best done out of the tank or suck it off with a siphon hose. Or just control the nutrients, even though bubble seems to survive on lesser nutrients than other algae.

Dave

[Jadams]

I have an emerald crab in my tank, and she "elfie" rocks! (My girlfriend named the crab) She totally grubs down on the bubble algae. My tank is now 99.99% bubble free...

Go with an emerald crab forsure. Its worth the $5-$8 at your LFS

[critmin]

I've had good luck with emerald crabs. I've had quite a few and I've never seen them go after coral. They will clean algae off of coral which looks like they are eating it sometimes but I don't know, I've heard that there may be a few species of crab that resemble the emerald mithrax perhaps this was the case? For instance, with peppermint shrimp there are two species, one is from the pacific and the other is from the atlantic I believe and one eats aiptasia and the other doesn't. I think the pacific one's do. Anyway there are at least a few instances of misidentification leading to misunderstanding, but who knows maybe they do go after coral. Oh and mine have kept my bubble algae problem in check definitely.

[shred5]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9906804#post9906804 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by critmin
I've had good luck with emerald crabs. I've had quite a few and I've never seen them go after coral. They will clean algae off of coral which looks like they are eating it sometimes but I don't know, I've heard that there may be a few species of crab that resemble the emerald mithrax perhaps this was the case? For instance, with peppermint shrimp there are two species, one is from the pacific and the other is from the atlantic I believe and one eats aiptasia and the other doesn't. I think the pacific one's do. Anyway there are at least a few instances of misidentification leading to misunderstanding, but who knows maybe they do go after coral. Oh and mine have kept my bubble algae problem in check definitely.

I guess there are two places they come from and the ones that come from one of the places does not eat bubble algae. I forget which is which. Problem is almost nobody knows where theirs come from and they look the same. I think one of them grows bigger than the other. As far as eating coral it does not matter, emerald crabs maybe primarily herbivores but they are also opportunistic feeders and also if they are hungry which can happen very easily in a nano they will turn to other food.

all I am saying is you are taking a chance. Once they are in there they are very hard to catch too.

Dave

[critmin]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9907304#post9907304 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by shred5
I guess there are two places they come from and the ones that come from one of the places does not eat bubble algae. I forget which is which. Problem is almost nobody knows where theirs come from and they look the same. I think one of them grows bigger than the other. As far as eating coral it does not matter, emerald crabs maybe primarily herbivores but they are also opportunistic feeders and also if they are hungry which can happen very easily in a nano they will turn to other food.

all I am saying is you are taking a chance. Once they are in there they are very hard to catch too.

Dave


Well Dave, the two different species of peppermint shrimp can actually differentiated based on appearance. It is just that not many people take the time to figure out which is which. So what I am saying is that if you just took the time to figure out which is which then you shouldn't have a problem. And lots of things are opportunistic feeders like hermit crabs for example, but people don't have that big of problem with hermit crabs. I was once given a crab from a costumer at an lfs I work at that he said was eating his corals. It looked very much like an emerald crab but there were subtle differences. Or you know you can just leave it to chance.

[Rosseau]

So, if there is a certain sub-species which either eats or doesn't eat bubble algae....

Sometimes my LFS has them in tiny cubicles with a small piece of LR and chaeto. Any relation between those that will eat chaeto and those that eat bubble? or... am I just stretching now?

[critmin]

They don't seem to be interested in chaeto in my experience. And mine clean micro algae off of my red grape kelp. At first I was nervous because I thought they might eat all my red grape kelp but they just cleaned algae off of it. Well anyway, sorry for being argumentative. I've just had really good luck with them and I think they are great and whenever anyone says oh can I use this there's always someone who says well yes and no and in the end it just leaves people more puzzled and also how exactly do they know the circumstances of their claims? I'm just saying use emerald crabs but get them from a reputable dealer and you shouldn't have any problems.

[shred5]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9907945#post9907945 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by critmin
They don't seem to be interested in chaeto in my experience. And mine clean micro algae off of my red grape kelp. At first I was nervous because I thought they might eat all my red grape kelp but they just cleaned algae off of it. Well anyway, sorry for being argumentative. I've just had really good luck with them and I think they are great and whenever anyone says oh can I use this there's always someone who says well yes and no and in the end it just leaves people more puzzled and also how exactly do they know the circumstances of their claims? I'm just saying use emerald crabs but get them from a reputable dealer and you shouldn't have any problems.

It has nothing to do with a reputable dealer. Most dealers buy from the same wholesalers anyway. If you ask where they come from most dealers are going to say no and if they do know they are not going to know if they are the ones that eat bubble algae.


Thing is I am not sure it is even a different species, might be just from a different part of the world. Also both may eat coral on occasion, it just seems one eats some bubble algae and the other does not. It also seems that the one that eats bubble algae is more rare. Most people will tell you they have not had luck.

A friend of mine was manager of a place that bought critter direct. I believe these came from around Florida and none ever ate bubble algae. I would have to ask him if he remembers where they came from.

Fact is if you get him you have to watch him, I would hate for you to loose your favorite coral because someone said it is ok to put this and that in your tank. Use caution . Chances are he is not going to eat your coral or even do any major damage; this stuff happens all the time in the wild and is natural. But the thing is he will be hard to catch.

Dave

[critmin]

Well it does have something to do with a reputable dealer because if a dealer is knowledgeable and cares enough they will be careful to see what wholesalers have "good" crabs and which ones have "bad" crabs, because hopefully they care enough about their customers and livestock to observe what they get, which is what I do with all the livestock I get from the wholesalers. And I agree with watching him. it's always good to keep a close eye on all your tank inhabitants, especially at night. If you are really afraid of what might happen just use a quarantine tank to test it out. I am curious what specific kind of corals are people saying that their emerald crabs are picking on?