GlobalButterfly Posted October 19, 2017 Share Posted October 19, 2017 Brand new tank and complete newb. Can anyone ID this and let me know if he’s awesome and I’m super lucky or more likely, he’s a virulent pest waiting to kill and destroy anything I put in the tank. The bottom picture (black background) actually includes a mirrored reflection as he swam upside down on the surface, but does provide a good side profile. Thanks! Quote Link to comment
Boggers Posted October 19, 2017 Share Posted October 19, 2017 educated guess is a Nudibranch, but not 100%...more like 80% Quote Link to comment
YaBoyLaj Posted October 19, 2017 Share Posted October 19, 2017 The body shape leads me to believe he's a juvenile sea hare, but not 100% certain Quote Link to comment
GlobalButterfly Posted October 19, 2017 Author Share Posted October 19, 2017 I did wonder if he was a nudi but the pictures I kept seeing looked like they had little legs and I thought he looks more like a slug with spikes. Either way, probably NOT something I want to keep and name? Quote Link to comment
Muraki Posted October 19, 2017 Share Posted October 19, 2017 Isolate him, and see if he will eat cucumber or seaweed. Toss some other algae you can get with him as well. See if he appears to actively eat anything. Wouldn't hurt if you have a bubbler and a jar with a spare piece of small live rock. Shouldn't require to much to maintain in a separate system. See what happens! He also looks like a small sea hare to me as well. Quote Link to comment
GlobalButterfly Posted October 19, 2017 Author Share Posted October 19, 2017 He keeps going into the intake area on my Fluval Evo. Thought he was getting sucked in, I’d rescue him and put him back in the tank but on the way he was swimming today (pretty strong and relatively quickly) I don’t think he’s getting accidentally sucked in. He’s actually grown quite a bit since I first saw him and it looked like he was squeezing himself into it today. Quote Link to comment
GlobalButterfly Posted October 19, 2017 Author Share Posted October 19, 2017 A sea hare WOULD be a good thing right? Quote Link to comment
GlobalButterfly Posted October 19, 2017 Author Share Posted October 19, 2017 Here is what he looked like on 10/12. He’s probably doubled in size in a week. Quote Link to comment
GlobalButterfly Posted October 20, 2017 Author Share Posted October 20, 2017 Thanks for all the help. I’ll keep an eye on him and hope he doesn’t go over to the Dark Side. In any case, it’s only a three week old set up with hermit crabs and a few snails so I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt for now. I got a better picture of him last night and he’s pretty cool looking. Thanks again!! Quote Link to comment
Sjadet Posted October 20, 2017 Share Posted October 20, 2017 Seahares require lots of food. I don't think it would growthat quickly in a "brand new tank" unless you fed it? Quote Link to comment
GlobalButterfly Posted October 20, 2017 Author Share Posted October 20, 2017 We didn’t exactly start out with a “brand new” sterile tank. Let’s just say the tank MAY have started off with half a Homer bucket of ocean sand topped off with live sea water and about 20 hermit crabs my son collected on the last day of his fall break vacation to Panama City Beach. It MAY have then been transported back to Atlanta in the back of a minivan with a submerged bubbler for oxygen. After a very brief stint in the old 20 gal. we had in the basement (topped off with about 50% fresh salt water from local LFS), my son’s little crab aquarium might have been upgraded (and taken over) by his mom. As we have been feeding the hermits pellets daily (probably way too much) and have had more than a few instances of fatalities due to crab battles and insurrections, we’ve given the tank algae a good jump start (lol). Also, he’s been spending most of his time in the little compartment where all the water, excess food & waste go before they go through the filter. Think he’s been gorging on leftover pellets. 1 Quote Link to comment
Sjadet Posted October 20, 2017 Share Posted October 20, 2017 Ok one way to find out see if it gets big and fat! Be careful though, if it's actually a hare. They can release toxins when they die or get stressed. Especially with crabs that might nip on it. Quote Link to comment
GlobalButterfly Posted October 23, 2017 Author Share Posted October 23, 2017 Thanks for all the help. LFS confirmed it IS a sea hare and that yes, he will most definitely outgrow my 13.5 gal Evo. He also said he would be MORE than happy to take it off my hands when the time comes. Given his his current growth rate that might be sooner than later. Quote Link to comment
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