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Mystery Invert Video


Newstead

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Finally got a video of most of the mystery guy living in what seems to be a warren of tunnels in a small (3x2 inch) piece of live rock from Vietnam (I bought it for the 6 or 7 blue mushrooms that were on it). Every other morning or so when I feed mysis to the goby a few legs come out, grab a piece from the baster, and retreat. Saw the tips of the legs this afternoon and put 2 pieces of the small NLS pellets beside its hole.

I had thought it was a crab as there was a tiny white crab molt next to one of the holes but don't think so now. No claws and the body is ??? Please watch and give me your best ID...

 

Thanks ... here are some stills (on my phone so excuse quality - 3x but it is so small )

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Nooooooo ... was really hoping for something benign as I already enjoy the little legs waving for their piece of mysis. Luckily it is still in the QT with the ywg and a couple of zoa frags. Looks like this really will be the mystery hitchhiker tank ( a bivalve appeared last week)

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Nooooooo ... was really hoping for something benign as I already enjoy the little legs waving for their piece of mysis. Luckily it is still in the QT with the ywg and a couple of zoa frags. Looks like this really will be the mystery hitchhiker tank ( a bivalve appeared last week)

it's eating my sis shrimp?

It may be a benign sea spider.

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It loves the mysis. Waves its little arms when I have the baster in to feed the goby, so it gets a piece. Have never seen it out of the rock, day or night.

 

Did find an articke on wetwebmedia.com/pycnogonids.htm that had a pic that looked similar and deemed harmless. Fingers crossed. Most pictures and references I found were of very thin legged sea spiders.

 

Went back through my pics of this rock before the ha started on it (haven't cleaned it off since I am scared I will kill something) and there,was definitely a tiny crab at one point. Might be the "molt" I asaw a few days ago.

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So you either have a scavenger, or a predatory ( probably specifically arthropod, or just any small benthic fauna , many sea spiders ( pycnogonids) have very specific diets) either way rest assured he isn't going to be sucking the juice out of your corals any time soon.

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Thanks, amphipod - feel better now! I don't trust my own "ids". As long as he doesn't attack the goby and his friend the crab that are in there - not too worried about the zoas.

Endeis faccida possibly? Closest I can find though they all are referenced as "living on the bottom, crawling about" - this guy does love his rock!

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That is a possible match, there are many species of sea spiders, many similar species, many undescribed species, and many unresearched species.

If ever though you get a spider hitch hiking on you new coral frags, you might as well kill that spider immediately because the bad ones like to stick with their coral hosts.

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Good to know about the coral spiders. So far (1 month) this guy has just stayed in his rock. His legs got their mysis again today :-)

 

The clam/bivalve that was in the rock went walkabout. Saw him on the sand yesterday. Assume he went into the larger rock in the QT. For such a small live rock it has certainly been full of interesting thingd.

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Not a scallop. He is about 5/8 inch... first in the little LR from Vietnam, then appeared in the one piece of rock I was taking out of QT, then on sand at base of larger previously dead rock, then disappeared - I assume into that rock. Any ID ideas ?

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That looks like the ark clam (arcidae)

Amphipod, if you charged $1 for every ID ... when I first started trying to ID all the *stuff* on this rock I found a blog where the guy will answer questions for $5 in advance on PayPal. Just think of your riches if you charged idiots like me!!!

 

Thanks once again!

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Amphipod, if you charged $1 for every ID ... when I first started trying to ID all the *stuff* on this rock I found a blog where the guy will answer questions for $5 in advance on PayPal. Just think of your riches if you charged idiots like me!!!

Thanks once again!

but I like to share knowledge, it brings such an improvement, I get "payed" when I see people are using the knowledge that I try to share :)
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  • 2 weeks later...

Mystery finally solved! Excuse the background Price Is Right narration ;-). Still hasn't left his tiny universe but is coming out every morning for his little mysis shrimp - put it a bit farther from his hoke and was able to lure him out. Crab it is! The white spots on the rock/algae are copepods to give you an idea of size. Each of his legs are no longer than 1/4 inch.

Https://youtu.be/4fl3gnne7BE

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Lol he's cute and really shy, I like how he takes like 2 minutes just to be brave enough to take the shrimp.

Glad you finally got to the bottom of this case.

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Still think he is a weird little guy. He moves so slowly and differently from my emerald crab. Impressive claws for a minuscule fellow.

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