Clean-up crew

For the film, seeClean Up Crew.

Theclean-up crewis the term that has been used by many aquarists and vendors since the late 1980s to refer to various small animals commonly sold for use in keeping thereef aquariumclear of pest algae, detritus and parasites.

Among the most popular have long beenblue-legged hermit crabs,scarlet hermit crabs,emerald crabsand varioussnails.Other commonly used animals includelimpets,sea hares,sea urchins,brittle stars,algae-eatingcombtooth blennies,neon gobies,reef lobsters,cleaner shrimp,mysid shrimp,copepods,ostracods,isopodsandamphipods.Evenpeppermint shrimpthat feed on pestAiptasiaanemones are often included. Sometimes it is used for the shallow sediment-dwelling animals that live in thedeep sand bedofmarine aquariumsorreef aquariumssuch assand sifting starfish,spaghetti worms,bristlewormsandflatworms.

Clean-up crews have also more recently been used infreshwater aquariumsto control algae, detritus and pest snails. These often include various snails, shrimp, smallcrayfish,GammarusandHyalellaamphipods,Asellusisopods,Cyclopscopepods, ostracods,Planariaflatworms,California blackworms,sludge worms,LoricariidandCorydorascatfish,loaches,log suckersandsiamese algae-eaters.

The term clean-up crew, along withcustodian,has also been used for various arthropods, primarily a few established lines of terrestrialwoodliceandspringtails,used interrariumclean up since the late 1990s.The two most popular have long been the Spanish orangePorcelliosp. (often falsely labeledP. scaber) and a moderately large and prolific entomobryid known as the "giant" springtail. These small workers help to keep various small animal enclosures (for dart frogs, salamanders, centipedes, whipspiders, etc.) clear of decomposing food particles that otherwise can result in mold growth, mite infestations, or oxygen depletion from decomposition. Other terrarium clean-up crew inhabitants include variousmillipedes,soilmites,cockroaches,earthworms,whiteworms,bean weevils,crickets,darkling beetles,ladybirds,firebrats,sun beetlesandskin beetles.

See also

• Biological pest control
• Live sand
• Live food
• Coral sand
• Sand
• Live rock
• Algae eater
• Filter (aquarium)
• Vermicompost