SeaBee
Ha Ha Thats Funny!
I got one today! Just a baby! Acclimating now, he's cool.
Horseshoe Crab!
- Thread starter SeaBee
- Start date
bjohanson1234
.........
They are really cool, but I have heard of them knocking over rock work. So just keep an eye on it.
SeaBee
Ha Ha Thats Funny!
My Goby and Urchin do plenty of ecavating!
kwsm
Reefing newb
Horseshoe crabs are like other sand sifting inverts, in a 55g he will clean out your sandbed of everything and then starve to death without supplemental feeding of meaty foods.
We have one too though, they're neat. Only mine is dumber than a box of rocks and gets stuck on the powerhead.... It's a small koralia so the pull isn't even that strong.
We have one too though, they're neat. Only mine is dumber than a box of rocks and gets stuck on the powerhead.... It's a small koralia so the pull isn't even that strong.
ggNoRe
Reefing newb
Those are super cool crabs. Looking forward to seeing pics!
SeaBee
Ha Ha Thats Funny!
He dug right into the sandbed, so just close your eyes, thats what he looks like, so no pics for a while on this one. He's about an inch and a half long and white. My sand really needs him, so I hope he does a good job.
sen5241b
Reef enthusiast
I spend a lot of time on the beach in Delaware and I have seen a gazzillion of these things in the bay and ocean. They can get very big --too big for your tank. Do not grab them by their tails or you could kill them. Interestingly, they have copper based blood whereas humans have iron based blood (hemoglobin).
Toolman
RESPECT MY AUTHORITAH
100% growing up on the Jersey Shore (without Snookie thank God) we were lousy with then I think they came up here to spawn lol As soon as they completed the sewer systems and stopped the locals from draining their waste water into the Shrewsbury river the Horseshoe and jelly fish became scarce really don't miss either one been stuck and stung more then once. SeeBee should remember :mrgreen:
kwsm
Reefing newb
They don't usually get very big in captivity. It will outgrow a 55, but they're not very fast growers either.
sen5241b
Reef enthusiast
I've seen some that were close to a foot across.
kwsm
Reefing newb
Like I said, they will get big but they take forever to grow, and they don't get as big as you see them in the ocean. Takes 8-10 years for a horseshoe to even reach adulthood, let alone attaining a maximum size of a foot across in the wild for the largest females. They grow significantly slower in captivity and will generally only reach about 8" max in length.
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ccCapt
Reef Hacker
This is a creature best left in the ocean.
HShoeCrabsArt
"Horseshoe crabs are not true crabs at all, but actually much more-closely related to spiders. They are also inappropriate for mixed invertebrate aquariums for many reasons. These "crabs" need to be kept in large, specialized (non-reef) systems that are have great open surface area and sand of depth. Definitely not recommended for casual keeping in small home aquaria with coarse sand and dense rockwork."
"They are also said to be able to suffer seasonal famine and live without food for as much as a year! A year is also about how long it takes for these crabs to starve in mismatched marine aquariums. Too often, horseshoe crabs are placed in small aquaria with lots of live rock and not enough sand to burrow, forage and survive. Mind you that an abundance of live rock is very beneficial for reef aquariums. The problem is that these creatures, though, do not live on the reef proper. They do live near the reef, however, and will thank you very kindly if you provide a large open bed of deep fine sand for them to dig in. It takes perhaps 10 sq. ft per crab of more at >6"/15cm depth."
"Their natural feeding habits keep them very active at night though in captivity they are willing to feed most anytime of the day if stimulated. This is a large part of the reason why they starve in most aquaria- few are placed into systems with aged, deep mature sand beds that have adequate populations of food organisms to sustain them."
HShoeCrabsArt
"Horseshoe crabs are not true crabs at all, but actually much more-closely related to spiders. They are also inappropriate for mixed invertebrate aquariums for many reasons. These "crabs" need to be kept in large, specialized (non-reef) systems that are have great open surface area and sand of depth. Definitely not recommended for casual keeping in small home aquaria with coarse sand and dense rockwork."
"They are also said to be able to suffer seasonal famine and live without food for as much as a year! A year is also about how long it takes for these crabs to starve in mismatched marine aquariums. Too often, horseshoe crabs are placed in small aquaria with lots of live rock and not enough sand to burrow, forage and survive. Mind you that an abundance of live rock is very beneficial for reef aquariums. The problem is that these creatures, though, do not live on the reef proper. They do live near the reef, however, and will thank you very kindly if you provide a large open bed of deep fine sand for them to dig in. It takes perhaps 10 sq. ft per crab of more at >6"/15cm depth."
"Their natural feeding habits keep them very active at night though in captivity they are willing to feed most anytime of the day if stimulated. This is a large part of the reason why they starve in most aquaria- few are placed into systems with aged, deep mature sand beds that have adequate populations of food organisms to sustain them."
kwsm
Reefing newb
As adults, yeah. It's my understanding though that they're fine in home aquariums as babies with regular feeding. Once they start to grow and get large, it's time to rehome them.
Operative words here are with regular feeding. The same as starfish that will quickly clear out your sandbed, have to feed them too.
Operative words here are with regular feeding. The same as starfish that will quickly clear out your sandbed, have to feed them too.
Chris_150G
Reefing newb
Try to document its growth rate as best you can. This can be our case study for future recomendations.
dcantucson
Reef pro
I've had a couple that have lived 2+ years so far. After Larry's post I'm afraid that they are going to starve now.
I just brought home a horseshoe last night. He aclimated well and went to work in my sand. I had to trade my Picasso trigger, he was eating every invert I had. And I want a reef, not just fish and rock. So I made the trade and came home with the horseshoe, a red starfish and a red footed snail.
I think my horseshoe crab has mental issues. Enough that I got out the video camera. I had no idea they would swim around and play in the water current. However, he almost got his soft underside impaled on my long spine urchin. I will try to upload the video and post it. I'm still VERY new to the video stuff.
Dakwan
Reefing newb
looking forward to the video! Neat (and freaky) looking creatures
