The Pom Pom crab is a cute and mysterious reef safe crustacean. If you’ve ever seen this curious critter, you may wonder what it is dancing for, and what it is holding. It is actually holding two anemones, Triactis producta, that it uses…
An introduction to coral crabs, good and bad
There is surprisingly little information specifically about coral crabs in aquaria. Every now and then some hitchhikers arrive on our aquacultured and wild corals and we are able to gain a bit more insight into the life of coral crabs. Some crabs…
Pink porcupine crab looks is a blend of geometry and crustacean
The pink porcupine crab is a highly unusual species of king crab with crazy exaggerated spines on its head and body. What is fascinating about this decapod’s appearance is how incredibly long the spines are relative to its body, covering the…
The Orangutan Crab; Another sweet coral crustacean
Following our review of crustacean relationships with corals that we accoutered during the Fluval Sea Flores expedition, we are left wondering why we never see these associations in aquarium. One other crustacean that we often come to meet even together with our last candidate Vir…
The Sally Lightfoot Crab: A Real Character of a Crustacean
Sharing the surname of a famous Canadian folk singer, of whom I’ve been an ardent fan for many, many years (once again confirming that my profound nerdiness knows no bounds), the Sally Lightfoot crab, a.k.a. the nimble spray crab, of…
Ixa cylindrus is a spooky purple crab for your peaceful refugium
Ixa is a small genus of crabs with very unique characteristics that separate this group from most other. The grooves that meander around the carapace are characteristic for this genus, and gives the crabs a jig-saw like appearance. The species above…
Coral crabs aid ailing corals, combat disease
We as aquarists have always believed that coral crabs are mostly positive in their interactions with stony corals. The colorful smooth shelled ones are pretty and probably keep Tegastes and acro eating flatworms at bay, and we know that they…
Romantic Box Crabs star in the cute short film “Chivalry”
[vimeo width=”680″ height=”380″]http://vimeo.com/19147588[/vimeo] This short film about Box Crabs filmed at Stingray City in the Caymans features the kind of intimacy that we usually think is reserved for warm and soft animals. You may think that your aquarium invertebrates are…
