# Pom Pom Crab!!



## Puff (Feb 14, 2005)

so yesterday i finally tracked down a pom pom crab! i called up the LRS and asked them, and low and behold they had one! even better was one of the guys i know works there, and put it aside for me before it went and hid again. ive been after one of these for a while, but had never seen them up here. but now i have one!!

it has taken over the little cave on the top piece of my rock. i couldnt find him this morning, but they are mostly nocturnal, so im not concerned yet.


























in his new home under the pipe organ coral









i also bought a sand sifting starfish (a small one) to help keep my substrate moved around a bit. what a friggin cool ass invert!


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## nismo driver (Jan 27, 2004)

dude those are some verygood pictures. f it in htecup what kinda camera are yuou using? those things are pretty cool to see in action when theyare filtering stuff nice addition.


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## Puff (Feb 14, 2005)

nismo driver said:


> dude those are some verygood pictures. f it in htecup what kinda camera are yuou using? those things are pretty cool to see in action when theyare filtering stuff nice addition.


i use a Canon A650IS. pretty f*cking sweet camera. AKSkirmish recommended it to me and i found it for 320$. takes amazing pictures.

the one bad thing is that these guys are mostly nocturnal, and he is pretty small. so its hard trying to find him! im hoping he makes it, such a cool critter.


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## AKSkirmish (Jun 24, 2005)

First off-
Superb pics Puff-

Second-Never seen ne thing like it before....But looks kewl as hell....Care to give a price on it....


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## Piranha Guru (Nov 24, 2005)

What a great example of mutualism...looks like the right claw lost its anemone. I wonder if the one in the left claw will eventually reproduce by fission? Definitely a critter worth having!


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## Puff (Feb 14, 2005)

BioTeAcH said:


> What a great example of mutualism...looks like the right claw lost its anemone. I wonder if the one in the left claw will eventually reproduce by fission? Definitely a critter worth having!


first of all. the whole idea of the symbiotic relationship between the crab and the anenome is what really interested me. it's so friggin cool!

the pompom crab is an expert fragger! if it loses one pompom (anenome) it waits for the other one to grow, then splits it and picks up one piece with the "empty" claw. you know what's even cooler though? say there are two pompom crabs in a tank (or in nature), and one of the crabs has no pompoms. the other crab will either split his single anenome and give it to the "pompom-less" crab, or simply give the other crab one of its anenomes. pretty cool if you ask me!

if a crab couldnt be bothered waiting to split its anenome, it will go and pick up a small zoa or ric, and use that as a replacement until the anenome can be split!


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## Piranha Guru (Nov 24, 2005)

Puff said:


> first of all. the whole idea of the symbiotic relationship between the crab and the anenome is what really interested me. it's so friggin cool!
> 
> the pompom crab is an expert fragger! if it loses one pompom (anenome) it waits for the other one to grow, then splits it and picks up one piece with the "empty" claw. you know what's even cooler though? say there are two pompom crabs in a tank (or in nature), and one of the crabs has no pompoms. the other crab will either split his single anenome and give it to the "pompom-less" crab, or simply give the other crab one of its anenomes. pretty cool if you ask me!
> 
> if a crab couldnt be bothered waiting to split its anenome, it will go and pick up a small zoa or ric, and use that as a replacement until the anenome can be split!


That is amazing!!!


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## pirayaman (Nov 3, 2007)

man that crab is something else great pick up hahahah you got crabs aahahha


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## cueball (May 24, 2005)

i dont understand whats the anemone do for the crab again..? why is it holding it


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## Piranha Guru (Nov 24, 2005)

cueball said:


> i dont understand whats the anemone do for the crab again..? why is it holding it


They wave them around in front of them as a defense mechanism...fish and other predators don't like getting stung! The anemone then benefits by getting food scraps when the crab eats.


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## Puff (Feb 14, 2005)

BioTeAcH said:


> i dont understand whats the anemone do for the crab again..? why is it holding it


They wave them around in front of them as a defense mechanism...fish and other predators don't like getting stung! The anemone then benefits by getting food scraps when the crab eats.
[/quote]

the crab also drags the anenomes along the substrate to collect food


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## Piranha Guru (Nov 24, 2005)

Puff said:


> i dont understand whats the anemone do for the crab again..? why is it holding it


They wave them around in front of them as a defense mechanism...fish and other predators don't like getting stung! The anemone then benefits by getting food scraps when the crab eats.
[/quote]

the crab also drags the anenomes along the substrate to collect food








[/quote]

Do they do that for the benefit of the anemone, itself, or both?


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## Puff (Feb 14, 2005)

i just wanted to give an update on the little pompom crab.

she disappeared for a couple of weeks and i feared the worst. before that she has started to come out a bit during the day.

yesterday i went to feed the tank and she came racing out from the rocks and cruised around brushing the anenomes along the ground. such a cool critter. still one of my favourites.


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## zccef (Jun 24, 2005)

great crab for a reef tank. very elusive but it is a treat every time you see them. i have a few in my 50 gal i love them.


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## cueball (May 24, 2005)

so i wonder if these pom pom's could live with a few clown fish? how big do they grow? is there shell bigger than a 25 cents


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## pcrose (Mar 9, 2003)

wicked!!!! Nice find


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## Gordeez (Sep 21, 2003)

Puff said:


> What a great example of mutualism...looks like the right claw lost its anemone. I wonder if the one in the left claw will eventually reproduce by fission? Definitely a critter worth having!


first of all. the whole idea of the symbiotic relationship between the crab and the anenome is what really interested me. it's so friggin cool!

the pompom crab is an expert fragger! if it loses one pompom (anenome) it waits for the other one to grow, then splits it and picks up one piece with the "empty" claw. you know what's even cooler though? say there are two pompom crabs in a tank (or in nature), and one of the *crabs has no pompoms. the other crab will either split his single anenome and give it to the "pompom-less" crab, or simply give the other crab one of its anenomes*. pretty cool if you ask me!

if a crab couldnt be bothered waiting to split its anenome, it will go and pick up a small zoa or ric, and use that as a replacement until the anenome can be split!
[/quote]
That would be badass to see !

Killer looking pom pom as well man.


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