Finally ID Violet-eyed Swimming Crab (Carupa tenuipes) BUT now how do I care for him

[1stPhantom]

Hey so I had a hard time trying to ID this little guy but found him but no relevant information on him it’s as the title says a Violet-eyed Swimming Crab (Carupa tenuipes) So has anyone ever taken care of him or am I on my own

 

[kevgib67]

Hey so I had a hard time trying to ID this little guy but found him but no relevant information on him it’s as the title says a Violet-eyed Swimming Crab (Carupa tenuipes) So has anyone ever taken care of him or am I on my own

Beautiful little guy, glad you got the id you were looking for and I hope you get some info on care.

 

[1stPhantom]

Beautiful little guy, glad you got the id you were looking for and I hope you get some info on care.

Thanks

 

[Reefkeepers Archive]

Carupa tenuipes Violet Eyed Swimming Crab

Carupa tenuipesis commonly referred to as Violet Eyed Swimming Crab. Difficulty in the aquarium: Not suitable for aquarium keeping. Toxicity: Toxic hazard unknown.

www.reeflex.net

Try checking out the papers listed below to get an idea on their diet

 

[Reefkeepers Archive]

Carupa tenuipes Violet Eyed Swimming Crab

Carupa tenuipesis commonly referred to as Violet Eyed Swimming Crab. Difficulty in the aquarium: Not suitable for aquarium keeping. Toxicity: Toxic hazard unknown.

www.reeflex.net

Try checking out the papers listed below to get an idea on their diet

It does say they're carnivorous, try offering bits of meaty foods and see if they'll take them

 

[1stPhantom]

It does say they're carnivorous, try offering bits of meaty foods and see if they'll take them

I got you when I can find him I think he buries itself

 

[KrisReef]

I got you when I can find him I think he buries itself

Stick a chunk of flesh in the sand and it should find it?

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

Yeah, not a whole lot of info these - they're thought to be nocturnal, they're predatory/carnivorous, they tend to hide under rocks during the day, they're swimming crabs (so they can swim), and they seem to prefer exposed reef areas (so they probably like high flow).

Yours seems to be missing some legs (including one swimmeret), so I wouldn't expect it to go around swimming until after a few molts (probably a few weeks/months).

Based on the family's eating habits, I'd expect it to be highly opportunistic with its predation, but I'd also expect it prefer bivalves (things like clams, mussels, oysters, etc.), slow moving crustaceans (like hermit crabs and potentially shrimp), possibly snails, worms, brittle/serpent stars, sleeping fish, etc.

Basically just about anything they can get ahold of.

So, yeah, a good quality meaty food supplemented with algae would be my suggestion for feeding:

Personally, my suggested feeds would be as follows (I apologize, I haven't looked into frozen algae-heavy feeds enough to have one that I would suggest at this point; I'll have to remedy that):
Frozen (Meaty) - LRS Reef Frenzy, Hikari Mega Marine, then Rod's Original.

Pellets (Meaty) - Otohime, then TDO Chromaboost.
Pellets (Algal) - NLS Marine Fish Pellets (has 8 types of algae and one terrestrial plant).

 

[1stPhantom]

So update on him I still haven’t found him ima set up a camera tonight to see if he is eating the shrimp at night I have found a claw arm molt so looking to see if I can find more