Sand-dollars in an aquarium?

mfranklin · #1 07/10/2006, 10:24 PM

I recently came back from a nice tri to the beach and along with some beutiful little conchs I found tons and tons of sand dollars. so the question arose could they live in a tank and would they be safe? for the rest of the tank.

anyone know?

graveyardworm · #2 07/10/2006, 11:09 PM

Typically they are safe and eat diatoms and other alga in the sand bed. However they do require alot of sand bed per individual. One in a 55 gal would possibly be too much. An adult sand dollar typically will require about 10 sq. feet of sand bed, and if you have LR that will further limit the amount of grazeable sand bed.

sir_dudeguy · #3 07/10/2006, 11:17 PM

ya sand dollars dont normally do good in aquariums..ther was a thread about a week ago where someone put a link to an article about them...if the person that put the link reads this, please put that link again, cuz i cant find the thread.

silversnake · #4 07/11/2006, 12:47 AM

It is illegal to collect these in some areas. I was told by park ranger as i was collecting a few on the beach.

Krazy · #5 07/11/2006, 10:10 AM

I had a sand dollar in my tank when I first started it, It lived for about 3 months, now the poor little guy's shell is just a deco in the tank .....

I'd advise agaisnt it ...

mfranklin · #6 07/11/2006, 06:11 PM

well have no fear it was just a question.

I didn't have an answer as to whether people put them in the tank or not so I thought I would ask.

RL321 · #7 07/11/2006, 06:14 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by mfranklin
I recently came back from a nice tri to the beach and along with some beutiful little conchs I found tons and tons of sand dollars. so the question arose could they live in a tank and would they be safe? for the rest of the tank.

anyone know?

what beach??

sir_dudeguy · #8 07/11/2006, 07:29 PM

plus, if you go to most beaches along the u.s...they're colder waters than what we keep aquariums at.

mfranklin · #9 07/11/2006, 07:42 PM

This was in St Pete next to that old fort I can't remember the name
of it specifically

RL321 · #10 07/11/2006, 08:04 PM

oh I thought it was over here on the east coast.

mfranklin · #11 07/11/2006, 08:07 PM

no the water was surprisingly warm. I had never been swimming over there man the ovean was as flat as you could imagine. shells and sand dollars everywhere!

mvarghese84 · #12 07/11/2006, 08:16 PM

i found alot in fort myers / sanibel, florida too. I literally would grab a fistful of sand and find one nearly every time.

xian · #13 07/11/2006, 08:21 PM

Even if you could keep one alive they would strip your sandbed. As stated multiple times probably not a good idea. Also I noticed that you said you had collected some conchs. Make sure that they are not the carnivourous kind.

mfranklin · #14 07/11/2006, 08:23 PM

I didn't collect any these were big ones with some nice looking shells but they were put back. just fun showing them to the little one

ladyfsu · #15 07/11/2006, 08:25 PM

I'm on vacation with my nephews and kids at Indian Rocks Beach. The water is around 85. I don't believe in keeping lots of things from the beach, but I also like to see kids interested in marine life. We found 100's (yes, really) of sand dollars tonight (like we do every summer). I let each kid keep 2. The nephews from NC may or may not bring theirs home. My kids actually only kept 1 because I have some in tanks at school that have been alive for months.

We also caught lots of snails and hermits for the tanks at school (well, maybe a few will go to my 5 yr old son's mantis).