Saltcorner
By Bob Goemans
By Bob Goemans
Likely Reef Tank Suitable
Likely Fish-Only Tank Suitable
Range: Indo-West Pacific Ocean: Red Sea to Japan.
Size: 2 inches (5 cm)
Natural Environment: Inhabits rubble bottom areas where it builds a burrow in the sand and often forms a symbiotic relationship with several different goby species for protection from predators, as they have very poor vision.
General Husbandry: Rarely available in the home aquarium trade.
Once in the aquarium, rarely seen, yet usually heard at night by snapping the fingers of its single, yet exceptionally large claw. Loud enough to awake light sleeping aquarists.
Best maintained in reef aquariums with hiding places or fish-only aquariums with lots of live rock for protection and possibly a host goby.
As to diet, late evening snacks of meaty foods, e.g., small strips of fresh fish/shrimp flesh, sinking shrimp pellets or meaty freeze-dried foods placed near the area where it hides during the daytime will help reduce the nose it makes at night while hunting and/or provide some of its nutritional needs.
May eat small shrimp, snails and tubeworms.
Taxonomy:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Malacostraca
Order: Decapoda
Family: Alpheidae
Genus: Alpheus
FYI: Nocturnal.
Their carapace is bright red with a row of white dots along the sides and the telson is blue with a black ocellus on each lobe. Its antennae have red and white bands. The tips of first pair of walking legs, which are mottled red, are enlarged to claws, which are a light pink.
May attack ornamental shrimp.
Experience Level: Intermediate
Diet: Carnivore
Temperament: Peaceful
Aquarium Environment: Reef or fish-only aquarium
Coral Safe: Yes
Fish Safe: Yes
Invertebrate Safe: With caution
Acclimation Time: Shrimp are 'very' sensitive to specific gravity/salinity changes. Therefore, be sure to adjust the bag's water to that of the aquarium in which it will be placed by slowly adding small amounts of aquarium water to the bag every few minutes. In most cases, this process should take at least 15 minutes.
Aquarium Hardiness: Moderately hardy
Calcium (Ca): 380 - 430 mg/l
Alkalinity: 2.5 - 3.0 meq/l
Phosphate (PO4): <0.05 mg/l
Magnesium (Mg): approx. 1350 mg/l (relate to specific gravity) Extremely important for molting!
Strontium (Sr) 8 - 10 mg/l
Iodine (I) Trace element additives containing iodine should be used as recommended by their makers, as iodine is also vital for the molting process.
Temperature Range: 72 - 83°F (22 - 28°C)
Minimum Tank Size: 30 gallons
Lighting: PAR ratings N/A
Water Movement: WM 1 - 2
Specific Gravity: 1.023 - 1.025
pH: 8.0 - 8.4
