Crabs for 20 gallon tank
- Thread starter elkman
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Welcome to Reef2Reef!
Most here would say you can't fully trust any crab, and that goes for hermits, which are not technically true crabs. I keep both hermits and emeralds and love them. To me, the motile (moving) inverts are one of the coolest parts of the hobby.
Will a hermit eat a snail? Sure, if given the chance and if it's hungry enough. But I wouldn't worry about it, just keep the hermits well fed otherwise and they'll typically leave the snails alone.
Best of luck!
Most here would say you can't fully trust any crab, and that goes for hermits, which are not technically true crabs. I keep both hermits and emeralds and love them. To me, the motile (moving) inverts are one of the coolest parts of the hobby.
Will a hermit eat a snail? Sure, if given the chance and if it's hungry enough. But I wouldn't worry about it, just keep the hermits well fed otherwise and they'll typically leave the snails alone.
Best of luck!
elkman
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Thank you, i’m still trying to figure out all the invertebrates cause. I also think they’re one of the coolest parts do you have any suggestions for a 20 gallon tank? And do you think an emerald and the hermits could coexist? I also plan on getting a cleaner shrimp if that changes anything.
BriDroid
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I have blue legs in my 10 cube. They haven’t killed anything yet. Tanks been setup since October of last year. The do favor cerith snail shells, so I have a lot of extra shells in there for them. They do change out shells all the time, but leave my cerith snails alone. They’re also great at storing the top layer of the sand and eating anything on the rocks. I wouldn’t have a reef without them.
kevgib67
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Emeralds crabs will graze on your gha and other algae and have no interest in shells. I stick to dwarf red and blue leg hermits and have never had a problem. As mentioned above, add additional empty shells. I just asked my lfs for empty shells from their invert tanks and they gave me a handful.
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I also keep various hermits with an emerald crab in a 15 gallon, and no real problems.
Keep in mind that nothing is a 100% guarantee, especially not the temperament of any individual animal. Things can and do happen. You'll likely lose hermits and snails for reasons besides aggression, it just kind of happens.
You may find you have to periodically replace your Clean Up Crew (CUC) critters. You can certainly go to your Local Fish Store (LFS) or I like ReefCleaners.org for critters. They ship not all but most items by inexpensive USPS Priority Shipping, unlike many places that only ship overnight, which is expensive.
www.reefcleaners.org
Keep in mind that nothing is a 100% guarantee, especially not the temperament of any individual animal. Things can and do happen. You'll likely lose hermits and snails for reasons besides aggression, it just kind of happens.
You may find you have to periodically replace your Clean Up Crew (CUC) critters. You can certainly go to your Local Fish Store (LFS) or I like ReefCleaners.org for critters. They ship not all but most items by inexpensive USPS Priority Shipping, unlike many places that only ship overnight, which is expensive.
Reef Cleaners - Clean up Crews and Macroalgae
We specialize in algae eating invertebrates, natural filtration, and algae solutions for saltwater aquariums.
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