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Thread: Killer crab caused me to re-aquascape... Now am I gonna have to recycle??

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    Insightful Reefer mpcolson's Avatar
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    Killer crab caused me to re-aquascape... Now am I gonna have to recycle??

    Some of you may have seen a previous post I had in invertebrates about a a hitch hiker crab I had in my tank. It was determined I needed to remove him as he was not a good neighbor.



    I tried to capture him in a soda bottle but I never could get him, I think he was too fat to fit.

    SOOooo... I was going to just let him have a pass if he didn't cause problems as I was more concerned that my tank wasn't cycling as quickly as I had hoped. So I had Nitrites and Nitrates on my mind. I began to realize my Nassarius Snail count seemed to be down from 6 to 3 and I blamed that on the tank chemistry.

    I decided to go to the LFS and reload to help with my detritus, so I gave the coral a quick shot of snail food to get a head count and only one snail pops out! I think I really need to have a water test while I'm out. THEN I SEE WHY MY SNAILS ARE GONE. That CRAB! He pounced on the last Nassarius Snail I quickly broke that up and grabbed a rubbermaid tub. I tore the entire tank down piece by piece until I got that SOB out. I found shell fragments from all the dead Nassarius he had eaten mixed in the substrate.

    I really churned up the tank doing this needless to say but I did rebuild the LR and I took out EVERY crab that wasn't a store purchase.

    That's the good news... I just hope I haven't set back my tank cycle another month.
    Matt Colson

    Tampa Bay Buccaneers 10-6
    See you in 2012

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    Insightful Reefer Rostr02's Avatar
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    I would not add any livestock to your tank until your ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates hit zero again. Did you have your water tested after the snail genocide? And if the bottle trick don't work a home made spear gun with rigid airline tubing, sewing needle and rubber band always does.

    Bobby

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    Master Reefer SaltyDawg's Avatar
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    I've read about people who lean a glass against a rock and put bait in the bottom. The crab goes in after the bait and the glass is to slippery to crawl back out.

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    Grand Master Reefer CarmieJo's Avatar
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    +1 on no animals during the cycle. They may survive bit it isn't necessary and hurts them .
    Carmie


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    Insightful Reefer AZDesertRat's Avatar
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    You should not have any inhabitants in your tank yet, you are no where near ready at this point as you are still in the midst of a cycle. SLOW DOWN.

    Only bad things happen quickly in this hobby, ALL good things take time. Slow down and let nature take its course, it may be another month before you are through your initial cycle and then maybe add one small thing at a time like a snail or two. The system will have to grow more bacteria each time you add or change something to keep up with the additional bioload. Take your time.

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