Posts under ‘Invertebrate Pictures’

Here’s a huge threat to clam lovers. The Pyramidellid snail will hitch hike in on clams and snails, and will constantly feed on the fluids of their hosts. A small number of these parasite snails on your clam isn’t much to be alarmed about. However, these snails reproduce rapidly and will quickly become too much [...]

The Zebra Hermit Crab (Calcinus laevimanus) is a great herbivore for any aquarium. It eats various forms of algae and detritus, but it will attack snails and take their shells. This behavior is quite common among hermit crabs, and they get a pretty bad rap for it.

Here’s quite an interesting snail, the Fighting Conch. This snail has a very long proboscis, making it look similar to an elephant. This snail is a wonderful detrivore and sand cleaner. It will bury its entire body in the sand, only keeping its eyes above where it can see passing predators. Another good thing about [...]

The Sally Lightfoot Crab is one interesting crustacean, and one of my favorites. They have a flat shape, menacing claws, move about very quickly, and have a beautiful color. Additionally, their yellow antennae move up and down very quickly, further adding to their appeal. These crabs aren’t predatory though. They are algae eaters. Of course, [...]

Here is every fish keeper’s best friend, the Scarlet Skunk Cleaner Shrimp. These cleaner shrimp do just that, clean. But they don’t specialize in cleaning your tank. Instead they clean parasites and dead tissue off of your fish. The Skunk Shrimp will eat prepared foods, so they aren’t completely reliant on fish for food.

The Tiger Tail Sea Cucumber is a very useful invertebrate to have. They do a great job of eating leftover fish food and fish waste that accumulates in the sand. They will usually stay in a pretty small area of your tank, so you might have to use a couple of them in a larger [...]

Here’s a nifty little critter. It is a purple feather duster that has gold tips. In this picture, the feather duster is nestled between a Zoanthid colony and a rock with red Mushroom corals on it.

Pictured is a True Percula Clownfish (Amphiprion percula) and its host anemone. This clownfish and its partner (not pictured) dart in and out of the anemone all day, using it for protection from predators.

Certainly not a colorful shot, this is a picture of a Mexican Turbo Snail cleaning the aquarium glass with its rasping radula (tounge). These snails get very large and usually do better in cooler waters. Be careful too, as they can knock over rocks and dislodge frags.

Here is a picture of one of my former aquarium inhabitants…a very large female Amphiprion ocellaris clownfish being hosted by a rose bubble tip anemone (Entacmaea quadricolor). The female clownfish are larger and more dominant than the male. This particular specimen was quite large, leading me to come to the conclusion it was female.