View Full Version : Sponge Crab
bmw_zoan
01/29/2011, 12:23 AM
Hi I want to get a sponge crab for my 57 gallon reef tank. Does anybody know any vaulable information I should know before getting one? Will it bother corals or since they carry a sponge can he change and grab some zoas and carry those around? Ive seen some carrying zoas and if anything like that is possible I dont know if he can harm corals etc... Any info I can get I would really appreciate thanks :)
LeslieH
01/29/2011, 08:57 AM
That is a possibility. Sponge crabs belong to the family Dromiidae. Most of them have distinct preferences for what they wear including, depending on the crab species, corals, tunicates, wood, & rocks. Since they're hard-wired to carry something if their preferred covering isn't around they will pick up other things.
peasofme
01/29/2011, 11:30 AM
theyre not reef safe or animal safe
bmw_zoan
01/29/2011, 12:31 PM
hey peasofme why do you say they aren't reef safe or animal safe? I've done a little research and it says they are reef safe.. Have you had any personal experiences why they arent reef safe?
Bongo Shrimp
01/29/2011, 05:10 PM
They are reef safe but they can pick stuff up and move it around. They don't eat corals or other animals.
I would be careful though because they can get kinda big. They might get to be a bit of a pain when bigger. I found one that was about 2" long. Now than might not seem like it is very big but in a tank with small frags...
mscarpena
01/30/2011, 06:50 PM
Mine loved to eat my LPS. Beautiful little orange sponge crab, but he had to go.
LeslieH
01/30/2011, 08:21 PM
Mark, you reminded me of a good point. There are some majids sold as sponge crabs, among them the caribbean orange sponge crab. It's pretty different in live style & appearance from the dromids I was talking about. So the question is, what kind does bmw_zoan want to get?
bmw_zoan
01/30/2011, 09:28 PM
Well what would be recommended? I think the dromids.. I just want to know before I buy it if any of these will be messing around with my corals or other stuff in the tank
peasofme
01/31/2011, 09:40 AM
this is the "good" one
http://www.aquariumdomain.com/viewMarineInvertSpecies.php?invert_marine_id=60
the bad ones are the ones that aren't round, but more triangle, sold as decorators and spiders.
i've had a nocturnal crab before, the teddy bear crab. it sat in his hole all day long and only comes out at night to cruise the tank looking for victims. it will cruise all nite long. the crab would possibly come out in low light or maybe actinic light, not sure.
LeslieH
01/31/2011, 09:52 AM
Thanks, peasofme. The pic on the right clearly shows how the fifth pair of leg is flexed up over the back to hold the sponge, and the one second from right is a different species from the other three.
Hopefully you can find one with it's own sponge. If not, make sure you have sponges in your system so it won't need to find a substitute in the form of your corals. I wonder if they would accept pieces of natural bath sponge (the kind you can buy at drugstores) or if it has to be a living sponge.
rlw5009
12/31/2012, 12:37 PM
I got an orange decorator crab and caught him eating my pulsing Xenia frag :(
Frag $29.99, crab $6.99- He took a swim down the porcelain after that.
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