Am I a monster if..

[rayadog]

I murder a mom?

I went nuclear last night when I assumed this worm I saw was a Eunice sp. (very small and the hermit crab poop I watched it eat/use seemed very docile-like). Anyways, pulled the rock it built a shelter in and as I smashed I found a gravid gorilla crab! That was the nuclear success I didn’t know I needed!

I DO NOT want to put her in the sump obviously. But I’m curious, can I keep her in a bucket with a heater and powerhead? Would I need a filter? I wanna see a return on investment without investing… then maybe I’ll pull out an old tank.

I’m just so curious but I just consolidated tanks and do not want that partner argument of putting it back up just for what might just be genocide in the end. They’ll be cute at first though… might be enough to sway the argument.

How would you “save” this crab and her eggs with the least amount of effort possible?

 

[mmorrison55]

I don’t save gorilla crabs. Add me to the monster club.

 

[Reef Jedi]

I either throw the gorilla crab in the sump, overflow or give to the LFS as trigger food. It’s not inhumane as they get eating in the wild.

 

[rayadog]

Oh yea, I have 2 in the sump already. I just am not about to throw a gravid female down there just to find them in my tank again. But I am a little interested in watching the reproductive process and larval to juvenile stages.

 

[KrisReef]

Best way to save something like that is to put it in a jar of alcohol and put the lid on and put it on the shelf.

It is an interesting problem that you have posed here. If you set up a nursery and have a successful hatching then you will have many more lives to deal with, in the end.

One now, or Many later? Reminds me of that Star Trek movie where Spock implodes in the Genesis Bomb. I wouldn’t want you to have to deal with that ethical dilemma.

 

[rayadog]

Best way to save something like that is to put it in a jar of alcohol and put the lid on and put it on the shelf.

It is an interesting problem that you have posed here. If you set up a nursery and have a successful hatching then you will have many more lives to deal with, in the end.

One now, or Many later? Reminds me of that Star Trek movie where Spock implodes in the Genesis Bomb. I wouldn’t want you to have to deal with that ethical dilemma.

exactly. Trying to dissociate myself and tell myself whatever happens is not a guarantee. Whatever happens is a conundrum for future me.

I actually like the preservation idea; feels scholarly AND ethical. Bloodlust must have blinded me to think that I have that option.

 

[rayadog]

Just caught another one in main tank…

Rock has been in since beginning of February 2025. Surely they’re not actually mating and just have stored sperm? I would love for this to be the last one as something has developed a hearty taste for corals.

 

[mfinn]

Single solitary crab might go in the sump. But a female with eggs. Nope.

 

[rayadog]

Single solitary crab might go in the sump. But a female with eggs. Nope.

I already have a male in the sump.. which made me wonder at first. But they’re not broadcast breeders. Unless…

Google search tells me they need to have just molted and then do the deed physically.

 

[rayadog]

It never ends. Just found this monster male molt. Have they been getting down?

 

[BryanM]

After the experiment is over and you have 30 of them, best to have a friend with a predator tank and use them as food.