Where did it go???

[POLARBEAR0871]

I bought a horse shoe crab yesterday and then mysteriously disappeared. I've turned up ever rock sifted through the sand and can't seem to find it any ideas???


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[54seaweed]

probably buried somewhere

 

[POLARBEAR0871]

I don't understand where though I went through all of the sad


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[Sniperhank]

Then you just didn't find it. These guys are always in the sandbed digging around for food...and normally quickly consume all there is in the sandbed and starve.

 

[Patty1980]

Lfs actually SELL horseshoe crabs for in home aquarium pets??

 

[Sniperhank]

Lfs actually SELL horseshoe crabs for in home aquarium pets??

For about 15 bucks. And they normally starve to death in most systems, especially the small ones as there isn't enough food in the sandbed due to the size.

 

[54seaweed]

i don't think the biggest tank could handle a horseshoe crab
as they are constantly eating and require a lot as they are very messy crabs
its also recommended to have at least a 10 inch sand bed and most tanks dont come close to that ,
looking at my 90g if i used a 10 inch sand bed , i would loose almost a 1/4 of the tank to sand , in my book that's insane
i remember as a kid catching them , some of them are huge just shy of the size of a man hole cover and that's no exaggeration

 

[treemanone2003]

We've got them all over in my area and every once in a while, hundreds of them die en masse in a variety of sizes. I couldn't imagine buying one for a home tank. As 54 stated, man hole cover sized is not unheard of.


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[Patty1980]

That's really sad. I've never noticed them in Oklahoma shops. One of the animals I remember most from Zoology. Not a "pet" animal for sure.

 

[Cichlid-dude]

Ive seen some huge horseshoe crabs on the beach. I measured one at 22" in diameter and that wasnt the largest one i saw.


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[mr_X]

And, they aren't even crabs. More closely related to spiders actually.

 

[amyb_70]

IMO the store that is selling such a thing for home aquariums should really be educated enough to let the buyer know these things. I've seen crabs for sale, not sure what kind. I only know what I just read and assuming this is accurate I feel bad for the OP who probably was not aware of any of this. Hope you find it and more so can bring it back to the store. Good luck


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[POLARBEAR0871]

Well I did look up the animal and they like to eat worms in the sand bed which I have too many of and absolutely hate so on my end not knowing that they often die in the aquarium did a good and bad thing in this case good for me that he's eating the worms I absolutely hate and bad for him cuz once they're all gone he's gonna die I did find him though and he seemed to be doing well but then he buried himself again I have about a 4-5 inch sand bed and he's completely covered


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[amyb_70]

Ok, I'm going to sound really dumb but are you saying that aquariums with sand substrate have worms? If that's correct PLEASE educate me a little. That really skeeves me out.


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[POLARBEAR0871]

I have these stupid worms in my tank that have like 3-5 arms that come out they're filter feeders completely harmless but I don't like them


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[Sniperhank]

I have these stupid worms in my tank that have like 3-5 arms that come out they're filter feeders completely harmless but I don't like them


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Those are brittle stars, quite different from worms that can live in our systems.

 

[Mebbid]

Ok, I'm going to sound really dumb but are you saying that aquariums with sand substrate have worms? If that's correct PLEASE educate me a little. That really skeeves me out.


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Most aquariums acquire some kind of bugs.. sand or gravel. but these are normally the ones that people hate in reef tanks.

And they are like little porcupines.. Their spines come out stabbing you when you touch them.

 

[amyb_70]

Most aquariums acquire some kind of bugs.. sand or gravel. but these are normally the ones that people hate in reef tanks.

And they are like little porcupines.. Their spines come out stabbing you when you touch them.

EWWWW!!! I thank you very much for taking the time to explain what was being said. I must say that took away any interest I had in a saltwater tank. I don't get how the worms or other things. wk


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[Mebbid]

EWWWW!!! I thank you very much for taking the time to explain what was being said. I must say that took away any interest I had in a saltwater tank. I don't get how the worms or other things. wk


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haha, like it or not fresh water tanks have tons of gross worms in it as well. The bristle worms like I linked are a good thing though. They are scavengers and help keep your tank clean

 

[amyb_70]

haha, like it or not fresh water tanks have tons of gross worms in it as well. The bristle worms like I linked are a good thing though. They are scavengers and help keep your tank clean

Are these bugs things I can see with the naked eye. Obviously the worm in the reef tank is easy to see. I've never seen a worm in my tanks, if I did, I would have jumped out of my shoes. Is is possible to prevent this? You said the one pictured is a good kind, do these critters help in some way? How do they get there? Sorry for all the questions, this is a huge shocker to me.


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