Fiddler Crab/Horeshoe Crab

laura-jean

laura-jean

friend to the fish
Does they need any kind of special food, or will they scavenge enough to get fed on their own?

I bought some crab pellets that said hermit crabs/fiddler crabs and put a couple pellets in there, but I'm just curious if they needs those or not. I have one small blue/yellow damsel, one little fiddler crab, a tiny horseshoe crab, and a just a regular little hermit crab at the moment. The horseshoe crab has buried himself under the sand (I've got about 2 and 1/4 inches of sand), the hermit crab is on top of my live rock formation, and my fiddler has hidden in a tiny cave under a piece of rock. 10 gal tank.

Thanks for any advice!
 
Fiddler crabs are semi-terrestrial -- are you sure it's a fiddler crab?

The horseshoe crab will not live long in your tank, sorry. Horseshoe crabs live off of fauna that lives in the sandbed. There is no way you have enough fauna living in the sand of a 10 gallon tank (especially a new tank) to keep a horseshoe crab alive -- they need at least 100 gallons (they can grow fast as well).
 
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They said it was a fiddler crab...are there different types? At the store they were all completely submerged.

And that's disappointing! :( Is there anything I can give him instead, while the tank matures?
 
It will take months for it to grow big, it will starve to death before it has a chance to outgrow your tank. They just don't do well in captivity because of their dietary needs.

Can you post a picture of the fiddler crab? I'm thinking it's another type of crab.
 
He is completely out of reach in a tiny cave under my live rock, and so that I don't stress him out more than he probably already is (due to being taken from all of his friends and moved to a new, brighter place) I'll leave him there. But if I see him moving out and about I'll take a picture. I bing-ed "fiddler crab" and he doesn't look like any of those pictures...I might need a new fish store. Luckily I can think of at least four within five miles of me. :)
 
Yes I would say you are definitely better off going to a different store from now on :)

Google emerald crab and sally lightfoot crab. Is it either of those?
 
Nope, not either of those. I looked through the invert gallery on here and he looks like this one but is darker red in color. He's like red and green, without any kind of fuzz on his shell.

showimage.php
 
Horseshoe crabs really shouldnt be sold to hobbiest at all.Their really not suited for life in a glass box.But your not the only one thats made that mistake.
I'm also betting the other isnt a fiddler too.

OH
And since you got 4 LFS's so close,can I move in with you? :D
 
I cant believe your LFS sold you a horseshoe crab knowing the size of your tank. He`s definitely in it for the money. They need a mostly sandbed in the tank that is plenty mature for a nice rich fauna in the sandbed. Find another LFS.
 
First: LFS....local reef store?
Second: Sure! I'll just make some room in my closet. You can buy all of my tank stuff and we'll consider that fair pay for rent. XD
Third: SO MAD ABOUT THE HORSESHOE CRAB BECAUSE HE'S SO CUUUUTE :'( So so so so so cute. I'm already attached. Oh well. :'( Maybe mine is a midget...........? awserxdfctgyvuhilj;ohdugdsfabghjsdgfuasgfus ANGRY.


I think I have so many fish stores by me because I'm in Huntington Beach, right along the coast....? Also close to quite a few airports? I dunno. It's handy, because I am never going back to that store again. Except in a week to get my clowns, which I already paid for.
 
the crab you have is a red strawberry fiddler crab... they don't require going onto land to survive though, they are pretty neat and apparently getting more common around here...
someone said they were from hawaii at our LFS but i'm not too sure they are, there is a different variety called the hawaiian strawaberry crab that isn't reef safe and has a completely different body setup... the guy you have should be reef safe, mine likes to hang out in caves... i hardly ever see him... heck i dunno if i still even have him, its been a few weeks since i've noticed it.

the horseshoe crab should be taken back to the LFS, or maybe taken to another LFS that would give you store credit, theres no way in hell a 10g will have enough sandbed life for it to chow down on :( in that size of a tank theres not a whole lot of things like that you can keep living for a long time... I know, I'm part of the whole nano-tank club! lol
 

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