Two Nights / Two Crabs

[csauer52]

So this is two nights in a row I caught one of these guys eating my acropora. This one did a nice number on my bird of paradise which is how I found him. I was thinking what the heck happened to the polyps on that coral and BINGO, saw him moving.

Pulled the rock out and pried him off but the damage was already done. Will corals heal once they've been eaten and had their skin scraped off? There's a dime sized patch that this guy mowed clean.

Thanks!

 

[rookie07]

Corals will regrow if healthy.
Crab looks like a gorilla (or teddy bear) crab, but very hard to tell from pics. Could even be an emerald crab...very hard to see picture clearly

 

[csauer52]

Thanks rookie. I'd go with gorilla due to how hairy he was. Sorry on the pic quality, I took it with my droid and had to zoom in really far. I can't believe how much damage he did in one day. It didn't look like that yesterday.

I guess I'll have to just keep an eye on the coral and see what happens over time.

 

[rookie07]

Hairy means gorilla crab...glad you caught him.

I would bet you have more. I found one in my old 120, then found a few more once I knew how to look. Keep vigilant with the flash light at night (red light is best bc it wont disturb them). Get them out whenever possible, you can put them in your sump (if you have one), or offer them for free to other members (helps others out), do not flush or kill it.

Your corals will regrow, do not stress
about it. Corals will regrow faster than they grow, as a perfect skeleton is already in place.