Giant crab with corals on his shell??

[Amy Dawson]

i went to petco when I first got my saltwater aquarium set up. I got a few fish and corals from them before I knew about ordering corals online. So I bought this huge coral that the salesman said was on a piece of live rock. Put it in the tank and it looked great for a few weeks and then it started moving slowly. I've been searching online to try to find this "moving walking coral". It turns out that it is a giant crab with some sort of Stoney coral growing all over its back. Does anyone know anything about this???

 

[Amy Dawson]

Here's a picture of it

 

[steve&mari]

Galaxia is what it looks like. And the green crab is a emerald crab. Looks like rock otherwise from pic. I'd guess something other than that crab is moving it. I'd be watching at night with lights out. Red light will let you watch better.

 

[Amy Dawson]

Ok I'll have to watch at night. There are these two black straps coming out of the rock and I thought it was plastic at first but it seems to be the legs or tentacles of something? Ok thank you very much!!

 

[tomtom2245]

Agreed, looks like an emerald to me as well.

 

[Jdeleon]

Thats an emerald, what makes you think its moving? do you find it at different places or do you see walking tracks in the sand? if its tracks that's just the emerald walking at night. hard to believe that guy would move the coral

 

[steve&mari]

Try to get pictures of the "legs/tentacles" if possible then we can help identify if it's a worm or starfish ect you're seeing.

 

[Amy Dawson]

It always moves overnight. Usually about a half inch or so. Not very much at all but you can see where it slid in the sand. Maybe there's another crab inside of it?

 

[Amy Dawson]

Yes I will put pictures of its legs up now.

 

[Jdeleon]

im intrigued on what might be under there now lol.

 

[stevo01]

Peanut worm might be the UWO lol. I've never heard of a peanut worm hosting anything besides dendro but maybe there is a shell,crevice,or hole it's living in underneath the coral. My walking dendro moves several inches every night.

 

[Amy Dawson]

Now there happens to be a star fish beside of it but it's the dark colored set of legs

 

[steve&mari]

That's pretty creepy lol hopefully someone may have a idea. #reefsquad hopefully one of you might have a idea what it is.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

weird, and so cool! do thery move like an elephants trunk?

 

[clownin_around]

That's cool though

 

[steve&mari]

I would so be recording it over a night or two lol. Just to get better look at it over time n moving. I'm so intrigued by what's possibly in it lol.

 

[Amy Dawson]

I'll try to record it overnight but I don't have the red lights. They kinda go up and down like from the sand bed to maybe an inch or so above it

 

[Reefer1978]

Super creepy

 

[Psiber_Syn]

There's no way the emerald crab is moving that more than likely it's a snail or conch having the galaxea on its back may dramatically slow it down also

 

[Amy Dawson]

I'll flip it over in the morning and put up some new pics