HItch Hiker In Real Reef Rock

[ChiTownRomeo]

I like the look of Real Reef rock and I like the fact it's man made. I thought it was free from hitchikers. Boy was I wrong. I got alot of it from Premium Aquatics and it's full of these crabs. Should I pick them all out?

 

[Macscale]

They seem to be Daldorfia glasseli or a swimming crab. Not sure though.

 

[mwilliams]

If it were me I would get ride of them just to be on the safe side unless someone here has more experience on that particular crab.

 

[Rutrag]

I imagine that Premium Aquatics stores it in a system with natural live rock in the line ending up with "contamination" in the Real Reef Rock. I think the only way to be 100% hitchhiker free is to start from dry rock. Even then, the first piece of coral you add could have hitchhikers.

Nonetheless, I'd move any unidentified crabs to the sump or feed them to a mantis shrimp or puffer to be safe.