Pom-Pom Crab care guide
Pom-Pom Crab (Lybia tessellata) — minimum tank 30 L, temperature 24-26 °C, pH 8.1-8.4.
Compiled by Aquairi from published sources · Published · Updated
Overview
Pom-Pom Crab (Lybia tessellata) is a boxer (pom-pom) crab of the family Xanthidae, listed in the Aquairi knowledge base as an intermediate-level species. Tiny crab famous for carrying small anemones (Triactis) in each claw like cheerleader pom-poms for defense. Best in nano peaceful tanks.
Taxonomy
- Family: Xanthidae
- Genus: Lybia
- Scientific name: Lybia tessellata
- Common synonyms: Boxer Crab, Cheerleader Crab
Habitat
Lybia boxer (pom-pom) crabs (family Xanthidae) are tiny Indo-Pacific reef crabs that carry a small stinging anemone in each claw, brandishing them for defence and using them to gather food, in one of the best-known crustacean symbioses. In the Aquairi knowledge base this species is recorded from Indo-Pacific.
Tank requirements
- Minimum tank volume: 30 L (7.9 US gal)
- Adult size: 1-2 cm
- Temperature: 24-26 °C (75-79 °F)
- pH: 8.1-8.4
- GH: 8-12 °dGH
- KH: 8-12 °dKH
- Salinity (specific gravity): 1.024-1.026
- Lifespan: 1-3 years
Diet
The species is an omnivore, taking a wide range of foods including meaty frozen foods, sinking pellets and detritus gathered from the rockwork.
Compatibility
The Aquairi knowledge base lists this species as peaceful. Suitable tank mates include Peaceful nano fish. It should be kept away from Wrasses, Hawkfish, Aggressive fish. It carries a small anemone in each claw and is best kept in a peaceful nano reef away from larger predators.
Breeding
Breeding requires an extended planktonic larval stage in open water before the young settle, which makes captive reproduction very difficult and rarely accomplished in home aquaria. Most specimens in the hobby are wild-collected.
Breeding the Pom-Pom Crab (Lybia tessellata)
Overview
Lybia tessellata is a small crab of the family Xanthidae, reaching only 1–2 cm, found across the Indo-Pacific in warm shallow waters near rocks and coral. It is famous for carrying sea anemones in specialized hooked claws for defense and, in some cases, feeding. This anemone-carrying behavior in the genus Lybia is nearly obligate and is thought to have evolved during the Eocene.
Sexing
Sexes are distinguished by abdominal shape, with the female's broader apron accommodating the egg mass. A gravid female carries eggs within the abdominal apron, which makes brooding females identifiable on close inspection.
Conditioning
Maintaining a pair of healthy anemones per crab and offering fine particulate and meaty foods keeps the animal in condition. No documented protocol reliably triggers or completes reproduction in a home reef, because the larvae are planktonic and cannot be reared in a display.
Breeding Setup
No practical home breeding setup exists. Research suggests xanthid crabs are gravid during the summer months, with this group releasing eggs around September, though specific Lybia reproduction mechanisms remain poorly understood. The released larvae are planktonic and require open-water rearing.
Spawning & Larvae
The female broods fertilized eggs under the abdominal apron until they hatch into planktonic larvae that develop in open water before settling. Because juveniles also need to acquire their defensive anemones at settlement, by inducing splitting of an existing anemone or stealing one from a rival, captive rearing is impractical.
Common Challenges
- Planktonic larvae are removed by filtration and skimming.
- Larvae require continuous planktonic food.
- Settling juveniles must acquire defensive anemones.
- Active fish such as wrasses and hawkfish stress or prey on the small crab.