Never add "THIS INVERT" to your reef aquarium?

[revhtree]

We're talking about clean up crews this week and a BIG part of a CUC are inverts! But not all inverts are good for a reef tank. Some are good at cleaning but are bad at coral nipping. Let's talk about it!

What are some common inverts (snails, crabs, etc.) that you would NEVER put in your reef? Why?

image via @CornishCrustyCorals

 

[Gtinnel]

I would never get another urchin in my reef tank. I got tired of playing his game of find the frag.
Im setting up a FOWLR and I probably will add one to it though.

 

[i cant think]

I’ve done this mistake once… NEVER again.
Whitespotted Hermit Crab. I had one that decimated 100s worth of coral and fish (It met it’s match with a boxer shrimp eventually).

 

[czoolander]

Personally i am done with urchins. Not because i dont like them because they look so cool

But i dont know many people that have had long term success with them. They seem to be sooooooooooooooooo sensitve to any peramiter swing and then just die

Never again

 

[Mackey]

Fighting Conch. True he has literally never hurt anybody or done anything of note. But I just know he's up to something....... I mean just look at a picture of them!

 

[Dcloser12]

Emerald crabs. Terrible creatures. Had one branching hammer with 13 heads start dying off. One night I watch the crab tearing out healthy polyps.

 

[amoore311]

Personally i am done with urchins. Not because i dont like them because they look so cool

But i dont know many people that have had long term success with them. They seem to be sooooooooooooooooo sensitve to any peramiter swing and then just die

Never again

Really? I’ve kept tuxedos longer than 5 years, I don’t think their life expectancy is much longer than that. All my others I’ve traded away. I can’t tell you the last time I had one die on me.

I have 15 captive bred tuxedos in my 220 now as well, I expect them to do just as well as the others in the past.

 

[FourPawz]

I will never have another peppermint shrimp unless I have an aptasia problem to deal with. I did not know that they can be such jerks. That WAS a rock flower nem.

 

[Fishinabarrel]

I no longer do any red crab that looks like a typical crab on the OLD bay seasoning packet. Had one, species unknown, they do weird stuff to the tank at night.
Rearranged too many things.
Possibly ate my sleeping watchman goby.
Stole a Frogspawn and used it as a roof for its house.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Emerald crabs
Peppermint shrimp
Scarlet hermit crab

NEVER AGAIN

 

[amoore311]

There are no hermit crabs or crabs of any kind in my systems.

fish snails and sea urchins will eat the same stuff hermits will. Without the side affect of murdering snails.

 

[Joe81]

E

Fighting Conch. True he has literally never hurt anybody or done anything of note. But I just know he's up to something....... I mean just look at a picture of them!

 

[shakacuz]

Emerald crabs
Peppermint shrimp
Scarlet hermit crab

NEVER AGAIN

what happened with the scarlet?

edit: peppermint shrimp i will never have again

 

[Aspect]

Sea Cucumber, my buddy's 5 year old reef tank crashed because of one.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Frags and pulls everything down

what happened with the scarlet?

edit: peppermint shrimp i will never have again

 

[AydenLincoln]

Snails/conch! They creep me out lol. I’d rather clean the glass or my urchin and starfish does it for me.

 

[MuggyReef]

I will never have another peppermint shrimp unless I have an aptasia problem to deal with. I did not know that they can be such jerks. That WAS a rock flower nem.

I just recently started my reef tank, 4 corals in. A Duncan, Zoa, Anthelia, and Birdsnest. Within days of adding them one of them decided to steal some mysis from my Duncan and tore a hole in it! It died a couple of days later. Was considering finally switching to a sump setup and moving them over there but don’t have the funds yet. I purchased another Duncan and placed it in the complete opposite side of the tank where flow is a lot higher but it’s further from where the peppermint shrimp hides. Only a few days in but the new Duncan as well as my second Zoa I picked up are doing great. Probabaly won’t get another peppermint, maybe a cleaner and a pistol to pair with my goby but no more peppermint. Since the Duncan incident though they seem to have calmed down and don’t go after any corals anymore. I’m thinking they were just super hungry since they didn’t eat the first day and I don’t know the last time they ate but now I don’t worry about it.

 

[ScubaFish802]

Starfish other than micro brittles

 

[AydenLincoln]

Starfish other than micro brittles

I love my little guy though! They are demanding though I know and just aren’t known to do well a lot of times in captivity.

 

[MuggyReef]

Emerald crabs
Peppermint shrimp
Scarlet hermit crab

NEVER AGAIN

I think I’ll eventually get emerald crabs again, they were my first inverts but all died within 3 weeks. They were really fun to watch though so I think when my tank is more filled out I’ll try again but they didn’t bother my coral, my calcium was low during that time and it seems like they died during molting. My peppermint shrimp killed my first Duncan on day three after adding them but since have calmed down and don’t go after my coral so they stay for now. I plan on going the sump route eventually and if I still have troubles with them I’ll move them down to it in the future.