Gorilla crab (hitchhiker)
Xanthidae sp.
InvertebratesSaltwaterPest species
- Care level
- Easy
- Temperament
- Aggressive
- Reef safe
- No
- Maximum size
- 5 cm
- Diet
- Omnivore
Care at a glance
The gorilla crab is not a species you buy but a hitchhiker that arrives in live rock: a stocky crab with heavy, often black-tipped claws and hairy legs. By day it sits deep in a crevice; only at night does it emerge.
While it is small it clears up leftover food, but a full-grown specimen takes sleeping fish, shrimp and even coral polyps. Catch it with a bottle trap baited with a piece of shrimp, or lift the rock in question out of the tank temporarily; waiting until it grows bigger only makes the job harder.
Good to know
Related species
Keep Gorilla crab (hitchhiker) in the BlubHub app
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Values are mainstream hobbyist guidance, not gospel — always watch what your own animals need.