Feeding live rock hitchhikers

[zdrc]

I got 10 lbs of KP aquatics live rock yesterday, and put it in a newly set up tank. I got lots of hitchhikers, feather dusters, spaghetti worms, two crabs, and a brittle star. I would like to feed them because the tank is so young (especially the filter feeders). How can I do this?

 

[Bucs20fan]

If you want to feed everything you will need a powerhead in your tank to keep the flow going or all filterfeeders will undoubtedly die. I would use some sort of coral food or fine powdered food for the filter feeders, Other hitchhikers such as crabs and worms will eat most any sort of food you put in there that will sink. Most frozen foods and pellets, but I would lean towards frozen foods so you get a better broadcast of the food over the rocks. Are you trying to keep all of them, including some of what could be bad hitchhikers?

 

[AlgaeBarn]

I got 10 lbs of KP aquatics live rock yesterday, and put it in a newly set up tank. I got lots of hitchhikers, feather dusters, spaghetti worms, two crabs, and a brittle star. I would like to feed them because the tank is so young (especially the filter feeders). How can I do this?

I would look into getting some phytoplankton for the filter feeders and even looking into PNS products like probio and yellosno down the road when you have coral

 

[zdrc]

I forgot to say this, but I also got a pistol shrimp. I haven't seen the crabs, brittle star or pistol shrimp since I put the rock in. I really need to ID the crabs and brittle star soon.

This is in a 12 gallon AOI (aquapod). The pump is 210 gph and it seems to be doing a pretty good job on it's own circulating the water. I'm a noob so I don't know for sure, but I can see that everything loose on the rocks is constantly being blown around by the water flow.

I'll get some frozen shrimp for the crabs. At the very least, it should help me catch them.

The crabs are probably bad. I'll catch them at some point. Hopefully they won't kill and eat anything too soon!

Phytoplankton sounds good!

 

[Bucs20fan]

Do you plan to have corals? Not all crabs are good TRUST me. You need to be sure what species everything is. You dont want something like a bobbit worm either. You wouldnt have seen it yet unless you took measures like a hyper or hypo salinity dip for the rock.

 

[Bucs20fan]

I suggest you remove the rock and do a dip ASAP. it doesnt kill the hitch hikers, it makes most of them come out of the rock. Then you can remove what you want from your dipping bucket or bin and put it back in the tank.

 

[zdrc]

Do you plan to have corals? Not all crabs are good TRUST me. You need to be sure what species everything is. You dont want something like a bobbit worm either. You wouldnt have seen it yet unless you took measures like a hyper or hypo salinity dip for the rock.

Yup, I'll be getting corals. It seems like most the crabs that come on the KP live rock are gorilla crabs. I'll be catching them and IDing them before I get corals.

 

[Bucs20fan]

As always, you do what you think is best. But I cannot recommend enough a dip for the rocks. You wont kill anything. I got 10 lbs from australia and you wouldnt believe what comes out of these rocks that you cant see. It is so very very hard to remove bad hitch hikers once they set up shop in your tank and get established. Most cases you have to disassemble your rockwork anyway so might as well do it in the beginning.

 

[Bucs20fan]

Traps are helpful if you try to remove in an established tank, but mostly catch your own fish many times over before they catch the one thing you want. Worm traps work very well on bristles and fires, but eunice and bobbits are notoriously difficult to catch in a trap, even harder in a tank that has been established for a while.

 

[zdrc]

Traps are helpful if you try to remove in an established tank, but mostly catch your own fish many times over before they catch the one thing you want. Worm traps work very well on bristles and fires, but eunice and bobbits are notoriously difficult to catch in a trap, even harder in a tank that has been established for a while.

I have no fish, so it should be relatively easy to catch the crabs.

The dip might be a good idea. I'm worried it'll harm the small fan-like filterfeeders I've found in the tank and any pods I have. Maybe I'll do that later today.

Which is less likely to cause damage? A hyposalinity dip or a hypersalinity dip?

 

[Bucs20fan]

Hyper is the most effective, It may kill some of the feather dusters but shouldnt kill all of them. they will come out of their tubes in alot of cases but you can just place them back into the aquarium after the dip and they will form new ones. It wont kill the pods but it will make them leave the rock. Its not about the fish as far as catching the crabs its their ability to hide in the rock and small spaces that makes it hard, coupled with a small tank like yours and you already dont have much room for your hand let alone a net or tongs. Same thing goes for worms, you might be able to grab some of the worm with tongs or your hand, but it may be far inside the rock and in most cases if you dont get the entire worm, it will grow back. You also need to constantly monitor the ammonia level in the tank you have the rock in, you will no doubt have some die off. It may not look like it but lots of the things you cant see have already died from the trip which will spike your ammonia level. I know you do not have any fish, but if the ammonia spikes it will kill all the things you do want on that rock.

 

[zdrc]

I read some about dips and I've decided not to do it. It seems like it really does have the capability to kill things I want to keep, and it's actually not that effective especially for things like eunicid worms. I bought the live rock because I want the hitchhikers anyway.

I'm gonna fish for the crabs so I won't need to get into the rocks. Of course, I might have to dip if I fail to entice them with some shrimp. Maybe I can make a mini crab trap.

I'm going to test regularly for ammonia, I'll be testing later today.