crab ID help!

Introvertedmaniack

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Sep 12, 2025
Messages
55
Reaction score
20
Location
South Australia
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
hello everyone! I found 2 little crabs in my tank today. one is pale white and red, so i'm 80% sure that one is a porcelain crab of some sort, but he's too skittish to get a photo of :(
the other crab is a bit bigger and he's the one I'm worried about. he hasn't got the black-tipped claws of a gorilla crab, but I'd still like to hear from people with more experience identify little crabs than i do! these are the best 2 pics i could get of him :/

PXL_20251027_100306631.MP.jpg PXL_20251027_100235242.MP.jpg
 

BristleWormHater

5000 Club Member
View Badges
Joined
Jul 4, 2024
Messages
5,141
Reaction score
7,837
Location
Roswell, GA
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
hello everyone! I found 2 little crabs in my tank today. one is pale white and red, so i'm 80% sure that one is a porcelain crab of some sort, but he's too skittish to get a photo of :(
the other crab is a bit bigger and he's the one I'm worried about. he hasn't got the black-tipped claws of a gorilla crab, but I'd still like to hear from people with more experience identify little crabs than i do! these are the best 2 pics i could get of him :/

PXL_20251027_100306631.MP.jpg PXL_20251027_100235242.MP.jpg
Definitely a member of Xanthidae, potentially genus Chlorodiella, these are reef safe with caution at best. Probably safest to remove it.
@ISpeakForTheSeas
 
OP
OP
Introvertedmaniack

Introvertedmaniack

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Sep 12, 2025
Messages
55
Reaction score
20
Location
South Australia
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Definitely a member of Xanthidae, potentially genus Chlorodiella, these are reef safe with caution at best. Probably safest to remove it.
@ISpeakForTheSeas
do I need to be concerned about it messing with my other livestock? I have 2 squat lobsters, 4 peppermint shrimp, 3 small brittle stars, and 2 astrea snails (and some surprise living mysis shrimp but im sure those won't last long) :(
also, im not sure if it helps, but it was eating random little things off the rocks earlier and showed no interest in the freeze dried mysis shrimp i dropped in earlier (left in for 2 - 3 hours) or the living mysis shrimp. does that mean its likely that this guys is safe to keep? :0
 
Last edited:

BristleWormHater

5000 Club Member
View Badges
Joined
Jul 4, 2024
Messages
5,141
Reaction score
7,837
Location
Roswell, GA
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
do I need to be concerned about it messing with my other livestock? I have 2 squat lobsters, 4 peppermint shrimp, 3 small brittle stars, and 2 astrea snails (and some surprise living mysis shrimp but im sure those won't last long) :(
also, im not sure if it helps, but it was eating random little things off the rocks earlier and showed no interest in the freeze dried mysis shrimp i dropped in earlier (left in for 2 - 3 hours) or the living mysis shrimp. does that mean its likely that this guys is safe to keep? :0
No I dont think you'll need to worry about it harming any of them but id be concerned for any future coral additions. I wouldn't take the mysis as a sign that hes reef safe.
Since these guys can ne very evasive, id recommend making a trap to get him out, if you have a sump he can live in there.
 
OP
OP
Introvertedmaniack

Introvertedmaniack

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Sep 12, 2025
Messages
55
Reaction score
20
Location
South Australia
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
i d
No I dont think you'll need to worry about it harming any of them but id be concerned for any future coral additions. I wouldn't take the mysis as a sign that hes reef safe.
Since these guys can ne very evasive, id recommend making a trap to get him out, if you have a sump he can live in there.
i don't have a sump, my tank and space are too small, just a 65L tank! i don't really plan on getting any corals or anemones, I prefer a FOWLR sort of style! except with only inverts as opposed to fish. IOWLR? haha! i'm glad he can stay! I'll take good care of him!
 

TOP 10 Trending Threads

WHAT AMOUNT OF LIVE ROCK AND SAND SHOULD BE PRIORITIZED FOR OPTIMAL BIODIVERSITY/FILTRATION?

  • 100% live rock + bagged sand

    Votes: 34 27.9%
  • 100% dry rock + 100% live sand

    Votes: 42 34.4%
  • 50/50 live/dry rock, 50/50 live/bagged sand

    Votes: 27 22.1%
  • 75% live rock, 25% live sand

    Votes: 11 9.0%
  • 25% live rock, 75% live sand

    Votes: 8 6.6%
Back
Top