WetShepherd
08/04/2011, 12:52 AM
After receiving such great advice on my clean up crew options in another thread I thought I'd push my luck and ask for help with some IDs. I'm surprised by something new coming out of the live rock almost daily. I've already removed a rock crab as I was able to identify him with an adequate degree of certainty and didn't feel safe leaving him in the tank. I tempted him with some frog pellets in a clean mason jar and nabbed him in the dark ;)
Following that successful venture, i started flipping my lights on at night from time to time to see if I could surprise any other creatures - I have. I've found 3 additional crabs which only seem to come out at night. I have pics of two, but the other is way too fast. Do I need to get these guys out asap? (The tank is still cycling so no fish yet)
The one I didn't get pics of is a very light cream color, smooth and has a body about an inch and a half across. I once saw him crawling upside down under a rock, the other time we both spotted each other at the same time like deer caught in the headlights - staring .... then he sped sideways out of sight incredibly fast. I haven't seen him since.
Here's another guy - about the size of two blue leg hermits. He moves like a spider, and he's not very fast.
http://www.northkeep.com/files/hitchers/crab01.jpg
The third one is very small as you can see by comparing him to my tiny substrate - i found him picking at the rock, eating - and then vanishing after being spotted. I assume into the substrate.
http://www.northkeep.com/files/hitchers/crab02.jpg
Since we're already busy identifying, I'm wondering what these guys are as well - good or bad? The pics I've looked at have some similar things, but I haven't seen any exact matches yet.
http://www.northkeep.com/files/hitchers/coral01.jpg
http://www.northkeep.com/files/hitchers/coral02.jpg
Thanks!
Following that successful venture, i started flipping my lights on at night from time to time to see if I could surprise any other creatures - I have. I've found 3 additional crabs which only seem to come out at night. I have pics of two, but the other is way too fast. Do I need to get these guys out asap? (The tank is still cycling so no fish yet)
The one I didn't get pics of is a very light cream color, smooth and has a body about an inch and a half across. I once saw him crawling upside down under a rock, the other time we both spotted each other at the same time like deer caught in the headlights - staring .... then he sped sideways out of sight incredibly fast. I haven't seen him since.
Here's another guy - about the size of two blue leg hermits. He moves like a spider, and he's not very fast.
http://www.northkeep.com/files/hitchers/crab01.jpg
The third one is very small as you can see by comparing him to my tiny substrate - i found him picking at the rock, eating - and then vanishing after being spotted. I assume into the substrate.
http://www.northkeep.com/files/hitchers/crab02.jpg
Since we're already busy identifying, I'm wondering what these guys are as well - good or bad? The pics I've looked at have some similar things, but I haven't seen any exact matches yet.
http://www.northkeep.com/files/hitchers/coral01.jpg
http://www.northkeep.com/files/hitchers/coral02.jpg
Thanks!