Arrow Crab Question

[Usatennisfan]

So to say I have an issue with bristleworms is putting it lightly. I manually remove them pretty much everyday and I only see more. Everytime I try and spot feed my chalices the bristles steal the food before the chalices get a chance to feed. I know arrow crabs will naturally prey on bristleworms and my LFS has a sale on them right now. My problem is I don't really know if I trust one in my reef. I worry about him getting too interested in my mandarin and/or clam. Anyone have any experience with arrow crabs in a reef with either clams or a mandarin? Can one really be trusted?

 

[misael888]

I would stay AWAY from them. I had one in my tank for 2 days, he ate part of my scoly on the first day so I moved it up higher on the rocks hoping it would not bother it again and on day 2 I found him eating my maxima clam first thing in the morning. That was the last time he ate anything if you know what I mean..

 

[Mike J.]

A large bristle worm population is indicative of a maintenance problem. If there isn't enough food in the tank to support the population they will actually cannibalize themselves. I would never put an arrow crab in one of my tanks. A coral banded shrimp will eliminate most of the worms, but there's issues with that too. I'd suggest proactive detritus removal and a few large water changes.