# crab came along with my live rock, but what kind of crab is this?



## drewgotdat

i was gazing at my tank the other day and i noticed i had a hitch hiker from my lfs! now i bought i emerald crab too but this other one looks nothing like that. it has a dark purple shell and red eyes... he constantly hides in mylive rock so it is hard to get a picture of him. should i leave him be in my tank or get rid of it? (not a reef tank)


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## Ægir

drewgotdat said:


> i was gazing at my tank the other day and i noticed i had a hitch hiker from my lfs! now i bought i emerald crab too but this other one looks nothing like that. it has a dark purple shell and red eyes... he constantly hides in mylive rock so it is hard to get a picture of him. should i leave him be in my tank or get rid of it? (not a reef tank)


You will have to look for a picture or get one for proper ID... most crabs arent good so...


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## Ægir

LIKE THIS?

?

GUIDE


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## Piranha Guru

If it has black tips on its claws, get rid of it ASAP.


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## drewgotdat

im going to try and lure it out at night and take a picture, it rarely comes out. how can i get it to come out and play?


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## Ægir

drewgotdat said:


> im going to try and lure it out at night and take a picture, it rarely comes out. how can i get it to come out and play?


Make a trap for it... take a pop bottle, and cut the top third off. turn it around so the mouth of the bottle is inside the bottom part. Attach it with staples (wont hurt your tank over night prob) then put in a piece of shrimp... The idea is to put it at an angle in the sand, so he crawls up and into the bottle, but cant climb out (because the mouth of the bottle is a one way funnel kinda)

It will catch any crabs you have in the tank so... keep an eye on it.


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## Dawgz

if u dont want it, and u live near NJ....let me know....my Mantis would love making a new friend.


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## Guest

I cant wait to see this crab. Is it big or small? The trap thing sounds neat.


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## drewgotdat

so this crab is now assasinating my fish one by one. he took out my bi-color angel and my anthias. i found him clinched on to both of them on two separate occasions just munching on them. i caught the emerald crab but this purple crab with red eyes is really making it difficult and he stays deep inside my live rock!


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## Ægir

drewgotdat said:


> so this crab is now assasinating my fish one by one. he took out my bi-color angel and my anthias. i found him clinched on to both of them on two separate occasions just munching on them. i caught the emerald crab but this purple crab with red eyes is really making it difficult and he stays deep inside my live rock!


BUILD A CRAB TRAP AND LET HIM DO THE WORK

and dont make the mistake of googling "Catching crabs" like i did...









but you can build the pop bottle one i mentioned earlier, or take a tall drinking glass and lean it against your rock at a fairly steep angle... place a small piece of shrimp inside and he will crawl in, but cant climb the slippery smooth glass back out.

Works best at night.


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