Alright, here's the long-awaited thread. Just so you know, I probably won't be able to purchase the crabs for a few months, as I already know where I'm going to be purchasing them at when they come in stock.
So, let's start from the beginning and I'll fill you in then update periodically. The updates may become more frequent (once a day/every couple days) once I purchase and receive the crabs, but we'll see about that.
Alright, so I decided to do this project over a year ago when I saw these crabs and fell in love with crabs. The primary reason behind this was because crayfish (my original first choice) are illegal where I live in AZ.
So, the first six months I did a ton of research to make sure I knew nearly everything there was to know about them. Then they came in stock and I couldn't purchase any.
Long story short, I ended up eventually special ordering these crabs via my lfs and bought three from them. Two of them climbed out and died (RIP). Please note I had them in a 75 gallon aquarium filled with water (I was stupid, I know, especially since I had done the research I had no excuse). I then bought two more and moved them all into a 10 gallon aquarium (another slightly stupid decision, IME).
Later, I found one of them with her legs torn off and only her carapace remained. I quickly moved this crab to the container I brought the latest two home in (this was one of the two) with an airstone. She survived and was able to eat, but when she went to moult I stressed her out too much b/c I was concerned she might need help. This was a naive decision. She died while preparing to moult.
My second to last crab had a failed moult, while my last crab climbed out of the ten gallon to look for a warmer place to live (it dipped below freezing and I forgot to put a heater in the aquarium).
So, in essence I've had just about everything possible go wrong with these crabs already, and I've learned quite a few lessons the hard way. (btw, I'm sorry I don't have any pics from back then)
Now on to today.
I have nine 10 gallon aquariums I will be using to breed these crabs. They will each have a DIY sponge filter, DIY moss wall (questions to follow), some spider wood for the crabs to climb on, and will be set up as sets of three.
I have 25 six-foot long 2x4s which I plan to create a DIY stand for the aquariums (three levels, each holding three aquariums. The stand will be situated where the first set of three aquariums are currently resting on the floor. Just envision a wooden stand around it so the aquariums aren't touching the wall), and for the future crablets which I plan to raise in a kiddie pool. I will purchase the crabs as trios (1M, 2F) and will house one trio on each level, one crab per aquarium.
The middle aquarium will hold a heater (the heat will dissipate into the adjoining two aquariums beside it, effectively heating those as well, tho perhaps with less effectiveness/efficiency).*
*I got this idea after keeping Red Clawed Crabs and noticing when I put a heater in the guppy aquarium next to the RCC, the crab aquarium would also be heated. I think I can use this to reduce the number of heaters needed, and thus the startup costs of this project (which, if successful, will be the beginning of my NPO [see my signature for a bit on that ]).
The crablets will be situated on the same level as the parent. For example, if a female panther crab in the middle level breeds, her F1 generation will be raised in the middle kiddie pool, the same level as the parent (middle, middle).
Since I already have uploaded the max of four (4) pictures (the three sets of three aquariums and the planned DIY sponge filter once the sponge is cycled), and two more are needed to help illustrate my question on the moss wall, I will publish this and reply with my moss wall question. More pics to follow as I continue this project!
So, let's start from the beginning and I'll fill you in then update periodically. The updates may become more frequent (once a day/every couple days) once I purchase and receive the crabs, but we'll see about that.
Alright, so I decided to do this project over a year ago when I saw these crabs and fell in love with crabs. The primary reason behind this was because crayfish (my original first choice) are illegal where I live in AZ.
So, the first six months I did a ton of research to make sure I knew nearly everything there was to know about them. Then they came in stock and I couldn't purchase any.
Long story short, I ended up eventually special ordering these crabs via my lfs and bought three from them. Two of them climbed out and died (RIP). Please note I had them in a 75 gallon aquarium filled with water (I was stupid, I know, especially since I had done the research I had no excuse). I then bought two more and moved them all into a 10 gallon aquarium (another slightly stupid decision, IME).
Later, I found one of them with her legs torn off and only her carapace remained. I quickly moved this crab to the container I brought the latest two home in (this was one of the two) with an airstone. She survived and was able to eat, but when she went to moult I stressed her out too much b/c I was concerned she might need help. This was a naive decision. She died while preparing to moult.
My second to last crab had a failed moult, while my last crab climbed out of the ten gallon to look for a warmer place to live (it dipped below freezing and I forgot to put a heater in the aquarium).
So, in essence I've had just about everything possible go wrong with these crabs already, and I've learned quite a few lessons the hard way. (btw, I'm sorry I don't have any pics from back then)
Now on to today.
I have nine 10 gallon aquariums I will be using to breed these crabs. They will each have a DIY sponge filter, DIY moss wall (questions to follow), some spider wood for the crabs to climb on, and will be set up as sets of three.
I have 25 six-foot long 2x4s which I plan to create a DIY stand for the aquariums (three levels, each holding three aquariums. The stand will be situated where the first set of three aquariums are currently resting on the floor. Just envision a wooden stand around it so the aquariums aren't touching the wall), and for the future crablets which I plan to raise in a kiddie pool. I will purchase the crabs as trios (1M, 2F) and will house one trio on each level, one crab per aquarium.
The middle aquarium will hold a heater (the heat will dissipate into the adjoining two aquariums beside it, effectively heating those as well, tho perhaps with less effectiveness/efficiency).*
*I got this idea after keeping Red Clawed Crabs and noticing when I put a heater in the guppy aquarium next to the RCC, the crab aquarium would also be heated. I think I can use this to reduce the number of heaters needed, and thus the startup costs of this project (which, if successful, will be the beginning of my NPO [see my signature for a bit on that ]).
The crablets will be situated on the same level as the parent. For example, if a female panther crab in the middle level breeds, her F1 generation will be raised in the middle kiddie pool, the same level as the parent (middle, middle).
Since I already have uploaded the max of four (4) pictures (the three sets of three aquariums and the planned DIY sponge filter once the sponge is cycled), and two more are needed to help illustrate my question on the moss wall, I will publish this and reply with my moss wall question. More pics to follow as I continue this project!
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