Collecting cleaning crew from ocean

[ROMADS]

I just moved to Pensacola, Florida from Texas. I saw live crabs and snails in the current right by the beach. Curious if I can simply catch and put in my tank for my cleaning crew? Also, can I use the live sand from the ocean to start up my new tank? Thanks for the help.

[GaryP]

A lot of the cleaning crew critters come from Fla. I'm not sure about the Pensacola area though. Most come from the keys I think. I'm not sure what critters you have in Pensacola as compared to the ones in the keys. I would suggest that unless you know what it is I would pass it up. Crabs are pretty tricky. A small hermit that looks like a "cleaner" may turn out to be a coral predator. I would check with some of the local reef keepers and see what advice you can get from them.

[ROMADS]

Thanks. I have only seen 2 stores here in Pensacola. I will go in them some time soon. People here are not so friendly like are dear friends in Texas. Thanks for the inputs. I have collected 6 snails and many crabs. I have begun to put the bigger crabs back, I will keep all the snails I can see and catch.

[SuperXdude]

i made the mistake of taking snails from corpus. 95% were carnivorous to my astreas. I did find one Nerite snail who thrived and is still alive (3 years so far!). As for crabs, you get what you pay for when you take from the ocean.

X

[GaryP]

Several species of snails common to the Texas coast, inluding lightning whelks and moon snails, feed on other mollucks. Its not uncommon to collect shells at the beach that have a hole drilled through the shell. These are created by one of these snails.

[Instar]

There are several snails you can find there that are beneficial. Nassarius obseletus is one of them but its buried in the sand a lot of the time. And Nerite snails, margarita snails, olive snails (great sand stirrers from the bottom of the shipping channel) are some of the ones that will do well in your tank and they can be found in your area. Also you may find some limpets that will adapt. I have one thats been in my reef for 5 years now. You can also find the attractive tulip snail and it will kill just as the other predatory snail you find on the jetties and cone snails are poisonous to you. It would be worth the time to study snails from the coastal wild life conservatory there and make sure you don't violate the strick collecting laws. The fines are a bugger.

[fishcrazy]

Stock that you take out of the ocean will have been exposed to many different bacteria and diseases, they build up an immunity to various things, however, you then add a fish that has been tank raised and it will contract the various diseases from the (carriers) because it doesn't have the built up immunity. (Just what someone once told me.)

[sharkboy]

Are thin striped hermits "reef safe"? I know they are scavengers and have large claws but they seem to move around rather quickly stirring up the sand...

[Ram_Puppy]

if their claws look like they are designed to tear up flesh, then they probably are. the claw of a crab is a good indicator of what it's personality will be like.

As far as disease goes...

there is something to be said of that I suppose. but more towards exposing pacific creatures to gulf pathogens. most of our fish are not tank raised, and it is for certain our live rock comes from the ocean, as do many of our corals and other critters. all of this can carry pathogens, so being worried about transmitting a pathogen from collection down on the coast is, well, let's just say we should all practice quarantine.