Invertebrate Longevity

[ThunderGoose]

I love my invertebrates. They're what brought me to saltwater in the first place. But I wonder - what is the longevity and survivability of these guys? I know some species don't survive well or don't live long. I'd like to avoid some of these. I know some of them that are difficult/ should not be kept, but I suspect there are others who should be on that list that aren't as commonly known.

So questions for the hive mind - if you kept (or failed to keep) the invertebrates listed below I'd love to know how long they lived in your tank or if you've tried and failed (maybe they just don't do well in reef tanks).

Sexy shrimp
Pederson's or anemone shrimp
Squat Lobsters
Urchins (which types)
Feather Dusters
Brittle/Serpent stars
Pom pom crab
Decorator crabs (and which type)
Dwarf hermit crabs
Porcelain crab
Cluster dusters
Snapping shrimp (which kinds)
Cleaner shrimp
Banded coral shrimp

Feel free to add others.

 

[Kamden Uelton]

Sexy shrimp - didn't keep.
Pederson's or anemone shrimp - didn't keep.
Squat Lobsters - didn't do well till I got a crinoid
Urchins (which types) - Tuxedo, will strip your rocks of all algae, snails will starve
Feather Dusters - didn't keep.
Brittle/Serpent stars - Good for CUC
Pom pom crab - didn't keep.
Decorator crabs (and which type) - didn't keep.
Dwarf hermit crabs - didn't keep.
Porcelain crab - I like the anemone variety, very interesting.
Cluster dusters - didn't keep.
Snapping shrimp (which kinds) - didn't keep.
Cleaner shrimp - didn't keep.
Banded coral shrimp - Yellow ones are peaceful and colorful

 

[K. Steven]

I've kept a mantis shrimp (Neogonodactylus wennerae) for several years. I think you'd really like mantis shrimp, especially the smaller ones that you can keep in a smaller species-only tank.

 

[samnaz]

I'm curious about sexy shrimp as well. I got a group of 4 about a year and a half ago. One died a few months ago, another last week. But the remaining two are doing great still, so I'm confused why the others died. My female even carries eggs and births tons of larve every few weeks (incredible sight to see!).

 

[samnaz]

Craaaaap. As of today, I now have one sexy shrimp left. Someone tell me their average lifespan is around 1.5 years..... otherwise I killed them somehow

 

[ThunderGoose]

@samnaz I have heard sexy shrimp have a short lifespan and, since most (all?) are wild caught, you have no way of knowing how old they are when they arrive.

I was hoping the hive mind would come in and we could create a one place resource for folks looking to find invertebrate lifespans. Oh, well.

@K. Steven Turns out I have a mantis shrimp who must have hitchhiked in on live rock. Right now she's in the display tank. I don't see her very often and I'm debating putting her in a species only tank (more work and money but I would hopefully see her more often) or leaving her where she is (risk to the crabs and shrimp in the display tank).

 

[samnaz]

@samnaz I have heard sexy shrimp have a short lifespan and, since most (all?) are wild caught, you have no way of knowing how old they are when they arrive.

I was hoping the hive mind would come in and we could create a one place resource for folks looking to find invertebrate lifespans. Oh, well.

@K. Steven Turns out I have a mantis shrimp who must have hitchhiked in on live rock. Right now she's in the display tank. I don't see her very often and I'm debating putting her in a species only tank (more work and money but I would hopefully see her more often) or leaving her where she is (risk to the crabs and shrimp in the display tank).

I always assumed they were young when I purchased them because they weren't fully grown. How young exactly (could be weeks, maybe months), I have no idea. You say they have a short lifespan so I'm curious... what is short exactly, in terms of months or years?

You're right. There is so little known regarding lifespans because nearly all invertebrates in the hobby, unfortunately, are wild caught. At least, hardly anyone can be certain, and most lifespans are just guesses (which isn't exactly reliable). I appreciate your thought/effort to create a resource anyway... gotta start somewhere.

We need more tank raised invertebrates available within the hobby. Knowing exact lifespans is just one of the many benefits of aquaculture.

 

[ThunderGoose]

I always assumed they were young when I purchased them because they weren't fully grown. How young exactly (could be weeks, maybe months), I have no idea. You say they have a short lifespan so I'm curious... what is short exactly, in terms of months or years?

You're right. There is so little known regarding lifespans because nearly all invertebrates in the hobby, unfortunately, are wild caught. At least, hardly anyone can be certain, and most lifespans are just guesses (which isn't exactly reliable). I appreciate your thought/effort to create a resource anyway... gotta start somewhere.

We need more tank raised invertebrates available within the hobby. Knowing exact lifespans is just one of the many benefits of aquaculture.

I've heard guesses ranging from 18 months to 5 years for sexy shrimp. Sexy shrimp are protoandrous and the males are small so size is not necessarily a good judge of age. [The males are smaller than females and they can change sexes and become female under certain conditions.] There is also the consideration that they are collected world wide so they could be several different species all sold under the same name because no one has looked at their genomes.