Tons of life in the tank and it's only been cycling for a week good or bad?

[Isaac]

My tank has been set up and running for approximatly 10 days 4 of wich have had live rock and live sand in it now I've counted seven small crabs ( I think thy might be emrald and just today staring at me from a hole in the life rock was a hermit crab the size of a thumb( sent shivers down my spine) and I've noticed at least 32 fan duster worms( think that's what there called) and I'm not sure about the last things thy look like shrimp but there see threw and they burrow in and out of the sand? I would like to no if any of these can be or might be harmful to the natural cycle or if any of them might be a problem for me if my hands are in the tank all advice is appreactated. Thank you

Isaac

[CarmieJo]

The shrimp like things are probably amphipods and are good and so are the feather dusters. (They won't hurt you either )

Can you get pictures of the crabs? They might be problematic. Are you sure it was a hermit crab and not a mantis shrimp hiding in the rock? Divers call mantis thumb splitters so you will want to watch out if that is what it is. They also eat almost everything so you will want to get it out before you add any other critters.

[Isaac]

I only have an I phone to work with so the pictures of the little crabs won't turn up good and the thumb splitting thing(makes me a little in easy) I thought it was a crab from it's eyes but I noticed when I turned my lights of it kinda came out from the hole and it had no shell) if it is a mantis shrimp how could I trap or kill the little freak???

[Amphibious]

You can trap a Mantis shrimp pretty easy with a pop bottle trap. Take a liter bottle and cut it off at the shoulder. Cut several slits down the top and then invert the top and insert it into the bottom part. Gluing it together helps keep the parts from coming apart. Bait the trap with a small piece of shrimp. You should have your Mantis in the morning. You can dispose of him as you wish but there are people who keep them in a separate system as they are quite interesting pets. Maybe your LFS will give you some store credit for it.

Dick

[Rostr02]

If you catch him get a pic so we can see it.

[Isaac]

I defently will

[saxman]

As you find things in your tank, you might want to use this pictorial ID guide to help you ID them and let you know if they're "keepers" or not:

Hitchhiker ID Guide

[mpcolson]

If you read that Hitch hikers ID you find that Chuck doesn't feel good about ANY crabs!

If the water bottle trap doesn't catch him, you may have to just go at it the old fashion way and remove a rock to find their hiding spot, then catch them in a cup and flush them. Some of the BAD crabs will actually drop and quickly bury themselves in the sand to hide when you try this. It may be your last resort.

Mainly because I had no room for the bottle trap to fit where the crab was living. I actually had to take all my LR out to get the one in my tank. But I also cleaned out a bunch of tiny crabs that would have been trouble down the road. It was really a good thing considering the age of the tank.

Hermit crabs hide in their shell.... Not under rocks. Unless they are molting. And in that case it would be seeking a new larger shell. I doubt you saw a hermit crab.

Your posts are exactly the same stuff I went through.. It's like the movie "Groundhog Day". I guess all of us s DO go through similar experiences. Hang in there Issac! It gets better... It really does.