Squat lobster

GoldeneyeRet · Jul 11, 2016

Allogalathea elegans, AKA squat lobster. I have one in a 4 ft 120 reef. I am planning on adding a second and am wondering if anyone has any experience on keeping two together.

First hand information on these is tough to come by...

Baby Ray · Jul 11, 2016

Live aquaria gets them in often
I would think that 2 in a 4 ft tank would be ok. They will each find their own space and stay there.

Roboson · Jul 11, 2016

What kinds of coral do you have in your tank? (It may affect whether you can have two).

GoldeneyeRet · Jul 11, 2016

I know DD has been getting them for at least a coupe of years and they always seem to sell quickly. Somebody must be buying them yet I cant find much first hand information. The one I have is great but I almost didn't try it due to lack of reports from fellow reefers.

Thanks for the reply and I also believe they will be fine together. It would be nice to find someone who has tried it though!

GoldeneyeRet · Jul 11, 2016

I have a mixed reef, mostly LPS, some SPS and a few zoos.

Roboson · Jul 11, 2016

They live on crionoids and some really enjoy climbing and hiding in branching SPS. If you have a good amount of that, then that would be good for them. They're slightly territorial when it comes to the best feeding spots.

GoldeneyeRet · Jul 11, 2016

That's great info. Do you have any? The one I have never climbs on anything other than rocks. It stays in the shadows but is always visible. I have a lot of caves and overhangs that it seems to like. I have several nice SPS colonies so the new one could have his/her pick.

Thanks for the replies and the good information!

Roboson · Jul 12, 2016

I don't actually have one, but I've been trying to get one for a while now. I also just watched a nature documentary that had a section on them. I'll see if I can find it. And I've done a bunch of reading on them. Well as much as I could, there isn't a lot of info out there.

They're climbing crabs, so he may just prefer your overhangs to your corals. Do you have any gorgonians?

GoldeneyeRet · Jul 13, 2016

No gorgs but I've been wanting one!

DD has squats all the time check there if you are looking

Bradw18 · Jul 13, 2016

Pics?

eatbreakfast · Jul 13, 2016

I've never kept multiples in the same tank, but they don't move around a whole lot. The ones I have dealt with picked a high location with good flow. This makes sense since they live commensally with crinoids, and that is what crinoids would like.

In a 4' tank you should be able to have a few.

GoldeneyeRet · Sep 29, 2016

I wanted to update this for anyone else who might be searching.

The introduction of the second squat lobster went completely uneventful. The two don't pay any attention to each other. They don't hang out together but don't avoid each other. No aggression to this point and I don't expect any.

It seems to have worked out well for me.