What are you doing with the bad hitchers?

[FrankB1]

After collecting all the "bad" crabs and mantis etc, what are you doing with them? Are you keeping or euthanizing? I know some keep mantis shrimp but what about gorilla crabs etc?

[hdtran]

I posted this question on the general forum (I'm rather squeamish about large hammers or boiling water).

The suggestions I got were: (1) Throw them in your sump or refugium, (2) Freeze & feed to your triggers, (3) Toilet (ugh!), (4) Give or trade to your LFS. I'm going with (4), and giving them to my LFS. If he uses it for feeding his triggers, I think it's out of my conscience, right?

[Bruddah Chrispy]

I've been slingshotting them at the neighbor's dog.

Just kidding. I euthanize them - a trip to the freezer and then down the garbage disposal.

[PRC]

I got a 10G tank for them. The Mantis is really worth keeping if you get one. More entertaining than most fish I've seen.

[boyooso]

I'm leaving the mantis in the tank... trying to feed them there. Seems OK so far.

The crabs I take to the LFS, we feed some to the trigger or grouper, others the owner gives them away.

Corey

[invertaman]

if anyone has bad critters and live in indiana. ill put them to use

[dwculp]

I put the Mantis and two crabs into a 29 gallon tank. When I get my giant, monster of the deep crab out of the tank he will go into my 75 gallon FO.

[phil519]

I decided to freeze this 5~6 inch critter and dispose. I know it doesn't appear to be the famed fireworm - but it scared the heck out of me. Maybe they should have called these things Sea Centipedes as opposed to "Bristle worms".

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v610/buyerny/bristle2.jpg

I never did "see" if this critter attacked any inverts or fish. Please don't flame me for killing something because of it's appearance. I know it sounds so vain but I wasn't sure and I didn't want to wait for something to happen before making a move on the critter.

[ClamIAm]

dwculp, just how big is this monster of the deep that you cant put it in a 29 gallon tank? I could never imagine a crab that big coming on live rock.

[Makchell]

I live in Tampa, so I just let the native species go from TBS LR.

[shan820]

Mantis shrimps (at least the ones captured) went to a 5G, until they died.

Gorilla unfortunately never captured. I reluctantly witnessed him kill my brittle stars and cucumbers, until one day he just disappeared. No lie. Wish I could take the credit, but honestly have no clue.

Toad fish will someday soon be donated to woods hole or another aquarium that wants him. rather give him to someone who will appreciate him than a LFS.

[dwculp]

You got a toad fish as a hitch-hiker on TBS rock?????

[dwculp]

Originally posted by ClamIAm
dwculp, just how big is this monster of the deep that you cant put it in a 29 gallon tank? I could never imagine a crab that big coming on live rock.

See the pics in this (http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=494732) thread.

[shan820]

dude that crab looks nasty...

and yes, a toad fish came in with my TBS LR. didnt know what it was for a long time, has grown alot over the last year. here is a pic from my gallery. we called him crazy fish until we realized it was a toad fish..

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/51748crazyfish.JPG

[dwculp]

VERY cool hitch-hiker!!! How big his he now?

[phil519]

that is very cool...could he have taken out your gorilla?

[shan820]

very possible... could also have taken out my two peppermint shrimp that were also hitch hikers. after only 1 year i think all of my inverts left are from the LFS, very few TBS survivors...

[mik219]

you got a toad fish... lucky. Cant wait to order tbs for my 54 corner.

[dcoufal]

I hug it and squeeze it and pet it and cuddle it.... Awwhhh. What happened to crabby? CRABBY?! CRABBY?! Why isn't crabby moving?!

Just kidding... ;)

[Iphis]

Hee! I love my hitchikers.

I could never kill them, and I can't seem to part with them, so...

I know where all my crabs hide out, I feed them all individually every 3 days with bits of fish and such.

So far I get more frustration out of my hermit crabs then my gorrilla crabs.

One of my gorilla crabs, at least I think he is one, is over an inch and a half across. Freakin monster :D He's missing two of his back legs (I didn't do it, he was like that when I found him), so he's pretty docile to begin with.

I got a gulf toadfish that went straight into another tank, he just started eating last night which I am thoroughly relieved to see. He's by himself, has lots of hiding spots, very happy little guy as far as I can tell.

I either have a mantis shrimp or a pistol shrimp in my tank. Something is making lots of clicking noises, and all my big guys/bivalves I have accounted for. If I should find him to be a mantis, he will have his own tank as well.

I don't have any objections to what other people do with their livestock, but I can't bring myself to harm a living thing that is just doing what he's supposed to do :D

Stupid conscience.

[kidzatheart]

Shan,
We have a redish color toadfish in our 80 gallon and we love him. If you ever wanna get rid of him we will gladly take him. I like the color of yours. We also have a 150 gallon we have to set up. Ours hides alot by burying himself. They are a very cool fish. Ours is about 6 or 7 inches.

[shan820]

kidzatheart--I wouldnt mind giving him up for adoption, but I think we would rather see him go to a larger aquarium... In a couple of months he may be headed to Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute...

Iphis--Good luck catching that (more likely 'those') mantis shrimp!

[Iphis]

Catching this little mantis shrimp is going to be simple.

I have a pair of tweezers I target feed my tank denizens with.

The mantis shrimp will quite literally come out of his hole, swim up to the tweezers, and eat off them, so long as I don't move them.

He is taking thawed silversides.

He's very amusing. I was given a very good idea from the Anthony Calfo lecture we had here that I'm going to try, which is basically putting food inside of nylon netting. Apparently creatures like this have little spines on their legs and will easily get caught in it.

I just need to make sure I'll be able to get him back out of it.

Iphis

[shan820]

youre lucky you have shrimp that come out like that. i wouldnt wait too long or he might stop doing that. i also had a mantis shrimp that would poke his head out at me and i was able to catch him by placing food in the end of a hose and siphoning it once he reached inside to grab the food. he got siphoned right into my bucket, it was great.

[Iphis]

I've been debating whether or not I really want to take him out.

I think I'm going to leave him in there. He's killing hermit crabs right now, which I'm rooting for. The only hermit crab I like stays on the opposite side of the tank.

Incidently, the hermit crab I like was a hitchiker with my first shipment. He is all grey with little tiny blue spots on his shoulders.

All the rest that got dumped with the second shipment in there have made a buffet table out of my tube worm rock, as well as attacking my cerinths.

I used to have two peppermint shrimps, one molted. I'm assuming the other peppermint shrimp killed him during his molt.

He doesn't seem to have a problem.

The huge "gorrilla crab" I have is on the opposite side of the tank, and I'd be suprised if the mantis would win against him.

The only person he is at odds with is the serpent star, because the serpent star steals his food.

Pretty amusing. Doesn't do any obvious damage. He leaves the urchins alone, and my porcelain crabs are somehow multiplying.

Who knows, temperment changes and such, but I'm not bothered by him so far. He's actually really cool. If he becomes a problem, I have a 8 gallon ready for him.

My tank is about four times as the one in my gallery. I really need to get new photos. Most of my sponges are still alive. I really love this rock. Only things I've added to the tank are a Lawnmower Blenny and a gold maroon clown.

Heh, you know those red macro algae things you commented on in my tank in my gallery? My clownfish hosts them. Freakin weird :D

[shan820]

keep an eye on your gorilla crab and serpent star feuds. I came home one day to find my gorilla crab in the corner of the tank, holding my serpent star up in the air, with a leg in each of his claws, as if for all the world to see. I was devastated, and went after him with a fish net. But he was quicker than me, buried the serpent star and himself in the sand. Damn crab reappeared, the serpent star did not. :(

[liverock]

Originally posted by shan820
keep an eye on your gorilla crab and serpent star feuds. I came home one day to find my gorilla crab in the corner of the tank, holding my serpent star up in the air, with a leg in each of his claws, as if for all the world to see. I was devastated, and went after him with a fish net. But he was quicker than me, buried the serpent star and himself in the sand. Damn crab reappeared, the serpent star did not. :(


Yall do not need to use a net to capture crabs, when you see one simply reach in the tank and GRAB them, they do not bite/pinch, <seldom> and is real easy to get them that way.......do not pick up a mantis with your bare hand, they CAN hurt you.....

TBS

[shan820]

OK you couldnt have paid me to touch that nasty hairy huge gorilla crab.....