Emerald carb

[dottybackss]

Is emerald crab going to clean hair algea on the sand and live rock also are they reef safe?

[tentacruelz]

Mine scrapes whatever algae he sees off my live rock, I've also seen him pick up individual pieces of the substrate and clean them off. I know you run the risk of them picking at corals when they get bigger or if they run out of algae to eat. So far, mine hasn't bothered anything and sticks to the algae. They are reef safe with caution, you never really know.

[nanoreefnate]

As with numerous animals in our hobby, they can sometimes go rouge and eat corals. I've personally heard customers complain about emeralds bothering zoas and softies. But emeralds usually will usually just eat hair and bubble algae.

[D Z]

I personally had a bad experience with one. I added it to my nuvo8 when I had some hair algae and bubble algae hoping that it would help clean up. Unfortunately, it proceeded to eat a perfectly healthy blasto frag and zoa frag, and left the algae alone. Oh, and FYI, it was not a very large one. Probably a little bit bigger than the size of a quater. I personally would never risk it again. I have heard the same story from FAR TOO MANY PEOPLE.

[HVani]

I've always had emerald crabs without issue. I also have made sure to get females. They seem to be less likely to grow huge and start eating things. They males I have had are usually removed once they start to get some size.

[tibbsy07]

My emerald carbs go right to my hips with all that algae they bring

[tentacruelz]

I've always had emerald crabs without issue. I also have made sure to get females. They seem to be less likely to grow huge and start eating things. They males I have had are usually removed once they start to get some size.

How do you ID the sex of an emerald crab??

[tibbsy07]

How do you ID the sex of an emerald crab??

Have to look at their lower abdomen underneath them. Females have a full "apron". They have like a full "shield" kind of look to their lower half. Males have a phallic shaped portion that splits their "shield" in half vertically.

 

Female

Male

[tentacruelz]

Have to look at their lower abdomen underneath them. Females have a full "apron". They have like a full "shield" kind of look to their lower half. Males have a phallic shaped portion that splits their "shield" in half vertically.

Interesting! I'll be checking mine out when I get home.. From what I can remember I think mines female

[hwk7072]

What's a good reef-safe crab? Pom pom?

[tibbsy07]

What's a good reef-safe crab? Pom pom?

Pom pom is definitely reef safe - but be aware that the anemone-like hands they have can sting other inverts and corals. Emerald crabs have been great for me, so have porcelain crabs and most people report acro crabs as good. I feel there is mixed results with hermits. Hermits have always left my corals alone, but they always end up eating my snails to take the shells, and I think that the snails are a better CUC for me, so I get rid of hermits when I find them. All personal preference.

[tentacruelz]

Yeah, my hermits went back to my lfs, they kept killing my snails that do much more cleaning then they do.. all snails is the way to go

[dottybackss]

Seem like adding a emerald is kind of risk lol. The reason I want to add one is I have some hair algea on rock and sand then I added some blue legs and red legs hermit but then they end up all dead. I have enough empty shell for them but they just dead after three weeks.