Crabs, snails, stars oh my! (sorry had to say it)

DSDoyle · 11/03/2017, 08:53 PM

Hello,

I have a 150g reef tank that is about 1.5 years old with lots of fish. I am wondering what I should generally consider being the right amount of different types crabs, snails and stars and any other "cleaners" I should consider.

Any thoughts?

Thanks,

Don

SAT · 11/04/2017, 06:32 AM

That depends. The usual recommendation from suppliers is a huge number of critters, which will quickly starve when they run out of food. The sustainable number depends on a lot of factors and I would suggest ramping up the number slowly, seeing what works, rather than relying on a magic formula.

Note that crabs or all types are opportunist feeders. For best biodiversity, avoid crabs, including hermits.

As starting suggestions... maybe a dozen Astrea snails to keep the glass clean. For catching food, perhaps a serpent star and a dozen Nassarius snails. A small yellow cucumber is nice for keeping the sand clean.

ReefNomad · 11/04/2017, 06:42 AM

I concur. Too often hobbyists are advised to get a massive number of CUC critters, and the result is a mass starvation once they've eliminated all the easy food.
Your best bet is to slowly build a crew, a few critters at a time. That allows you to see which critters actually do cleanup, and which are opportunistic, waiting for you to feed

11/03/2017, 08:53 PM	#1
DSDoyle Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2015 Location: Indianapolis, IN Posts: 52	Crabs, snails, stars oh my! (sorry had to say it) Hello, I have a 150g reef tank that is about 1.5 years old with lots of fish. I am wondering what I should generally consider being the right amount of different types crabs, snails and stars and any other "cleaners" I should consider. Any thoughts? Thanks, Don

11/04/2017, 06:32 AM	#2
SAT Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: Berwyn, PA Posts: 4,073 Blog Entries: 1	That depends. The usual recommendation from suppliers is a huge number of critters, which will quickly starve when they run out of food. The sustainable number depends on a lot of factors and I would suggest ramping up the number slowly, seeing what works, rather than relying on a magic formula. Note that crabs or all types are opportunist feeders. For best biodiversity, avoid crabs, including hermits. As starting suggestions... maybe a dozen Astrea snails to keep the glass clean. For catching food, perhaps a serpent star and a dozen Nassarius snails. A small yellow cucumber is nice for keeping the sand clean. __________________ Stuart Current Tank Info: 300G Caribbean biotype reef set up in 2003.

11/04/2017, 06:42 AM	#3
ReefNomad Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2017 Location: Grand Rapids, MI Posts: 130	I concur. Too often hobbyists are advised to get a massive number of CUC critters, and the result is a mass starvation once they've eliminated all the easy food. Your best bet is to slowly build a crew, a few critters at a time. That allows you to see which critters actually do cleanup, and which are opportunistic, waiting for you to feed