Do horseshoe crabs taste good?

[littlefoxx]

Have anyone ever tasted horseshoe crabs? I realized that my tank would be open to a lot more giant inverts(true/spiny lobsters, rock crabs, etc) if I am just willing to eat them near their max size. The thing is, I've never heard of anyone eating horseshoes outside of their native range, and I'm not sure if their taste is worth it. I can probably keep a Carcinoscorpius rotundicauda reasonably well for its entire life, but I haven't been able to find any of those in stock. Mostly just Limulus polyphemus(huge).

I have a horseshoe crab. I have a hard time believing she even has enough meat to make eating worth while lol

 

[Alpha_and_Gec]

Have to say this is the first thread I've seen on here discussing eating tank habitants that we have raised / grown

The other option besides donating/selling an overgrown animal :]

 

[vetteguy53081]

Lets us know

 

[Alpha_and_Gec]

I have a horseshoe crab. I have a hard time believing she even has enough meat to make eating worth while lol

Their wide carpace can be deceiving!
I do want to try those legs though....

 

[littlefoxx]

Their wide carpace can be deceiving!
I do want to try those legs though....

Lol I flipped mine over to look at them the other day to determine gender and she was moving them all like crazy! Lots of legs!

 

[Alpha_and_Gec]

I have a horseshoe crab. I have a hard time believing she even has enough meat to make eating worth while lol

oh btw, got photos? I'd love to see more horseshoes.

 

[Alpha_and_Gec]

Lol I flipped mine over to look at them the other day to determine gender and she was moving them all like crazy! Lots of legs!

They sure are silly! From the underside you can clearly see the connection between them and eurypterids though, with how the legs look.

 

[Alpha_and_Gec]

Lets us know

maybe I will get a horseshoe instead of a slipper lobster.....

 

[littlefoxx]

oh btw, got photos? I'd love to see more horseshoes.

Yep! Hard to get a good one of her. Shes so dang fast. Pops out of nowhere when she smells the food and runs all over the sand eating the food the fish miss! She molted once and I swear like doubled her size.

 

[Alpha_and_Gec]

Yep! Hard to get a good one of her. Shes so dang fast. Pops out of nowhere when she smells the food and runs all over the sand eating the food the fish miss! She molted once and I swear like doubled her size.

How long have you had her for? I heard they don't grow fast, and if I get one I may not have to resort to eating it when it gets too big if I don't stay in the hobby for longer than its growthspan.

 

[Alpha_and_Gec]

Yep! Hard to get a good one of her. Shes so dang fast. Pops out of nowhere when she smells the food and runs all over the sand eating the food the fish miss! She molted once and I swear like doubled her size.

She looks awesome btw. What's your current stock? does she bother high up corals at all?

 

[Reefering1]

You know..., getting something appropriate for your tank, or a tank appropriate for what you want to keep, is a better plan than planning to eat it once it's too big. Or set up something sufficient enough to breed a clean food supply.

 

[littlefoxx]

How long have you had her for? I heard they don't grow fast, and if I get one I may not have to resort to eating it when it gets too big if I don't stay in the hobby for longer than its growthspan.

She looks awesome btw. What's your current stock? does she bother high up corals at all?

So she was kind of a hitch hiker lol. I bought the used tank from a guy on FB. I decided to keep his sand and add new sand as well to keep bacteria and stuff. She comes crawling out of the sand about a month later about half the size she is now. Ive had the tank since March or first part of April. The guy had it around 4 years before me. So not sure how old the crab is to be honest, he never mentioned having one. Maybe thought she died or something. And no she doesnt mess with corals. She really doesnt crawl on any rocks just runs around the top of the sand getting her food then burrows in the sand and I dont see her until next time I feed! I did have some chalices that were lower to the ground and I have a few corals on the sand and she runs them over all the time. She really damaged my chalices and I had to move them to my other tank, she killed two of them from damaging them. Other than that no complaint with her at all

 

[littlefoxx]

So she was kind of a hitch hiker lol. I bought the used tank from a guy on FB. I decided to keep his sand and add new sand as well to keep bacteria and stuff. She comes crawling out of the sand about a month later about half the size she is now. Ive had the tank since March or first part of April. The guy had it around 4 years before me. So not sure how old the crab is to be honest, he never mentioned having one. Maybe thought she died or something. And no she doesnt mess with corals. She really doesnt crawl on any rocks just runs around the top of the sand getting her food then burrows in the sand and I dont see her until next time I feed! I did have some chalices that were lower to the ground and I have a few corals on the sand and she runs them over all the time. She really damaged my chalices and I had to move them to my other tank, she killed two of them from damaging them. Other than that no complaint with her at all

Stock is a PBT, purple tang, yellow tang, clown pair, foxface and a regal angel!

 

[Alpha_and_Gec]

You know..., getting something appropriate for your tank, or a tank appropriate for what you want to keep, is a better plan than planning to eat it once it's too big. Or set up something sufficient enough to breed a clean food supply.

The only big deal really is just the size, and the animals are cheap as dirt anyways. Might as well try something new for both my tongue and my tank.

Really I'm just stuck with this tank and want to think about what to put in it, and my local fish choices are limited.

 

[Alpha_and_Gec]

So she was kind of a hitch hiker lol. I bought the used tank from a guy on FB. I decided to keep his sand and add new sand as well to keep bacteria and stuff. She comes crawling out of the sand about a month later about half the size she is now. Ive had the tank since March or first part of April. The guy had it around 4 years before me. So not sure how old the crab is to be honest, he never mentioned having one. Maybe thought she died or something. And no she doesnt mess with corals. She really doesnt crawl on any rocks just runs around the top of the sand getting her food then burrows in the sand and I dont see her until next time I feed! I did have some chalices that were lower to the ground and I have a few corals on the sand and she runs them over all the time. She really damaged my chalices and I had to move them to my other tank, she killed two of them from damaging them. Other than that no complaint with her at all

Oh sweet snake eels that's the most pleasant surprise I've ever heard of! Wish that was me...

 

[Alpha_and_Gec]

Stock is a PBT, purple tang, yellow tang, clown pair, foxface and a regal angel!

She never bothered anyone? I know lobsters would opportunistically hunt anything that's standing still.

 

[Reefering1]

Oh sweet snake eels that's the most pleasant surprise I've ever heard of! Wish that was me...

Sounds delicious right

 

[littlefoxx]

She never bothered anyone? I know lobsters would opportunistically hunt anything that's standing still.

Nope she doesnt at all! I have snails, conches and hermits as a CUC and she just runs them over but never tried to eat them. She seems to only eat frozen food

 

[Alpha_and_Gec]

Nope she doesnt at all! I have snails, conches and hermits as a CUC and she just runs them over but never tried to eat them. She seems to only eat frozen food

Poor man's whale shark.... XD