Should emerald crabs get this big? Pic

[Burrito]

my emdrald crab was small. Like a nickel size then kept molting and molting and now he feverously eats frozen food and I rarely see him eat algae. Will it get much better? It’s constantly swiping at my fish when they get near?

 

[Katrina71]

Uh oh. He looks hangry.

 

[dragon99]

He looks like a good candidate for rehoming.

 

[User1]

Arm movement when fish are near is probably more of a warning rather than a predatory act of war or hunting. At least that is what I've noticed after owning them off and on over the years. Forage, opportunistic, feeding what comes to mind. Size doesn't look bad in the grand scheme of things. If it was mine I'd let it roll until I saw something to worry about.

To put it in perspective take a green brittle star raised up at night on its arms a bit off the substrate. Just enough shadow and clearance for a unsuspecting fish thinking he found a new place to rent. Next thing you know you hear "BAM!" all bubbly like because said green brittle star is cooking fish filet at Billy's Crab Shack for dinner. One is more obvious than the crab is what I'm saying.

Keep on eye on it and go with your gut. Great foragers though.

 

[ca1ore]

I've had them get that big on occasion, though usually the dusky wrasse gets them before that.

 

[SPR1968]

What have you been feeding him!! Lol

Just make sure you tie a rope around your ankles when working in the tank, as he looks a hungry boy!

 

[tdileo]

Mine was also nickel sized for about 3 months. One day he molted and is now probably the size of yours and I see him out constantly. I’ve never seen him touch anything, but I do worry about my mandarin.

 

[maroun.c]

I've had one grow to similar size. never lost any fish to him though.

 

[BlueCursor]

I had a couple bigger than that. One decided to catch my diamondback gobi when he got to close. Reached out and fish hooked him with a pincher and held on tight while the gobi when nuts swimming and thrashing all over the tank. I stuck my hand in the tank and chased the pair of MMA fighters until the crab got scared enough of me to let go of his prize.

That crab was subsequently trapped. Amazing how easy it is to trap a hungry crab.

Today I don't put the green ones in my tank. I bug only the gray ones because they stay smaller. Like all things in a reef tank including coral, the green varieties seem to grow better than the other colors.

 

[zach_discus]

Had one about the size of a tuna can in my old tanks refugium. Was a ballsy guy, even towards my hand. He ended up walking the green mile after that.

 

[ZoWhat]

AudreyII

Is your name Seymour?


.

 

[vetteguy53081]

That's one of the largest I've seen and in my experience when they get that large, they go after food source and coral.

 

[mcwhng]

Opportunistic feeders when they get this large—so watch closely if you wanna keep him. So do you like tempura? Looks about the right size for an appetizer!

 

[Dennis Begley]

I have one that is a bit smaller than yours. He is doing a GREAT job of cleaning off my rocks. I am amazed at how effective he is. And yes I am a bit worried about what he will grow into and eat. My LFS told me he will eventually be a problem as his appetite increases with his size. I hand feed him pieces of algae, well I don't use my hand, just to keep him from being too hungry. He was such a tiny thing when I first got him. How large do these crabs get?