what crab to get

[lorus]

Hi All,

Currently stocked with the following:

Dwarf Gourami 3
Clown Loach 4
Glo-Lite and Blue Tetra 12
Giant Danio 2

I wanted to get some kind of freshwater crab. Something moving sideways on the bottom would seem to be really cool.

Any suggestions please?

Thanks,

Lorus....

 

[lmw80]

Hm...not 100% sure on this one, but I don't think a crab is the best choice. The clown loaches are bottom dwelling species. and while they are or will get bigger, the crabs usually nip at fish that lay on the bottom.

Also, what size tank is this?

 

[lorus]

Hm...not 100% sure on this one, but I don't think a crab is the best choice. The clown loaches are bottom dwelling species. and while they are or will get bigger, the crabs usually nip at fish that lay on the bottom.

Also, what size tank is this?

Hmmm... That is a valid point. I did not think about that. Is there some non-fish, bottom dweller I could get? I saw some suggestion on an African frog, but that thing will sit still for a while. I want something that would actually move.

That would be 75G.

 

[lmw80]

I'm not sure, I will let someone else chime in. I think the same rule applies with crayfish as well.

 

[Pleco]

I'm not sure, I will let someone else chime in. I think the same rule applies with crayfish as well.

Crabs, crayfish, and lobsters will also eat smaller fish. If the tetras arent full grown you may wake up to one missing

 

[hc8719]

ive actually seen crabs sneak over the wall to another tank at lfs, the crab then attempted to pinch a golden dojo in half, but the loach moved in time.

crabs/crawfish/lobsters are kinda jerks...go for ghost shrimp amono shrimp, neocardia shrimp, marbled...they range from 1.5" to like 4"

 

[MSU Fan]

I used to have a crayfish that ate 3-4" bala sharks for lunch (which was both annoying and costly!)...beware, they can be very nasty and deplete your stock extremely quickly!

 

[Ferret_Friend]

I had a few fiddler crabs. Once or twice a fish got nipped, but the only fish that got eaten was a feeder guppy, so it was ok. For the most part, the crabs kept to themselves and the fish did the same.

Crabs are real escape artists though. I've had more get out of the tank when I first started with them. It was ridiculous.

Also, most crabs like to get out of the water from time to time. From what I've read and seen, it's not 100% neccesary, but they are less stressed when they can get out and relax. I once put a 2x4 with ropes dangling from it in my tank so my crabs could get out of the water. Worked great except that the 2x4 was blocking a lot of the light.

I have no experience with any other crabs.

Also, I'm told that fiddlers prefer brackish water, but the only reason any of mine died was because my Oscar apparently liked to eat crab. I thought for sure the males would be able to defend themselves, but I guess those big claws really are as useless as I've been told.

 

[Blazeherd2306]

Well, considering from what I've read and researched, there is no such thing as a FW crab.

Some are brackish, but they are not freshwater. You significantly shorten fiddler crabs' and red claw crabs' (and others) life spans when you place them in FW.

 

[Ferret_Friend]

How long do they normally live? If they have a half-life of over a year being in freshwater, I think it's ok. They're only like $4. I could replace one once a year.

 

[joannde]

Please consider that you'd be putting the crab into an unnatural environment in FW - it might only be $4 but its still a living animal. The lifespan is shortened because the animal is in a stressful / unnatural environment. Is it REALLY that important to you to put a living thing through what could be thought of as cruel living conditions ? Please reconsider

 

[Ferret_Friend]

I eat meat. Cows and chickens are in cruel living conditions every day. If I was that worried about animals, I'd become a vegeterian.

Besides, I don't eat seafood, so even if one crab a year dies in my tank, that's still far less than I would eat if I actually liked the taste of crab.

One could argue that keeping any fish in any kind of tank is unnatural and cruel because they don't have the freedom they would have in the wild. If we're all going to be that worried about aquatic animals dying, then perhaps we shouldn't be partaking in this hobby anyhow.

 

[joannde]

well FerretFriend, everyone is entitled to their opinion. There's a difference, in my opinion between raising animals for food and for "fun". Re the other fish, I only have farm raised fish, nothing wild caught, but you're right, maybe it IS cruel, but in return for their captivity I give them the best environment I can. ie: clean water, fully cycled, no overcrowding or overstocking and a variety of foods. I think there's a difference between housing fish in an appropriate environment vs housing them in an inappropriate environment vs raising animals for food

 

[Ferret_Friend]

True true. This is why as soon as I get my next paycheck, I'm ordering a python since I'll do water changes far more frequently if I get one. I'll admit to being more than lazy when it comes to water changes, because with a bucket, it's a lot of work.

I understand that the crab's preferred environment is brackish water, but I've heard from various fish stores that they do just fine in freshwater. Maybe they don't know what they are talking about. It's possible. The crabs I had that died were due to being eaten. They seemed alright with the freshwater, but who knows what's really going on inside a crab's head.

Speaking of doing well for animals, I just took in seven baby chickadees today. Their birdhouse fell out of the tree and was laying door side down for over a day before I heard their chirping and made the connection that they were IN the fallen birdhouse. BTW, these birdhouses were here when I bought the place. I've been meaning to take them down. Anyhow, I think the mother may have abandoned them after not being able to get to them. It's hard saying. I did a LOT of reading today, and basically it was pretty 50/50. If I take them in, they could die. If I leave them out there and the mother doesn't return, they WILL die.

So, now I have seven chickadees that I'll be taking care of for a couple of weeks until they are strong enough to try flying. Three of them are already halfway there. They don't really fly, but they can hover for a few feet about half an inch off the ground. Two others don't even know they are birds I don't think. They make absolutely no attempts at flight at all (I'll have to fix that). The last two are rather small and sickly... one especially so. I'm worried about those two. They look like they were the runts, and as such, not getting as much food as the others. I hope they survive. I got them a nice little cage and everything. It was only $15 for a cage and some finch food (I was told they are closely related to finches and they are very adaptable when it comes to their diet). I just hope it all works out.

I'm a mommy bird now!

Except that I'm a dude of course.

 

[hc8719]

ferret theres a good chance they will die if you feed them birdseed, i hope finch food has some flies and bugs in it

otherwise grabs some feeder crickets from a petstore for the chicks

 

[Blazeherd2306]

joannde is right. Fiddler crabs/red claw crabs are NOT freshwater crabs. Honestly, I don't think there are any freshwater crabs. Here in Florida, I live by brackish rivers and freshwater lakes/ rivers. I have never once seen a fiddler crab in freshwater. They prefer to stay in brackish waters.

If you do put a crab in freshwater, it's health will deteriorate and it will die much sooner than it would in a brackish water environment.

Please don't keep them in FW.

 

[Ferret_Friend]

ferret theres a good chance they will die if you feed them birdseed, i hope finch food has some flies and bugs in it

otherwise grabs some feeder crickets from a petstore for the chicks

I got them some nightcrawlers today. Tore them into pieces and fed them as much as I could. Tomorrow I'm going to get an eye dropper and some meat flavored baby food to help get some nutrients in them. I'm really concerned about the runt.

And why would they die if they eat birdseed?

 

[joannde]

Young birds do not eat seeds directly. Most young passerines (perching birds - your chickadees are an example) eat insects. The nightcrawlers were a good idea. I'm not sure if the meat baby foods will work, but its certainly better than seed. If you can find mealworms or waxworms (either at a petstore or a fishing bait store) that would be a better bet - just break them into small pieces, as you did with the nightcrawlers.
In those cases where the species does eat seeds (pidgeons for example) the parents semi digest the seeds and reguritate them to the chicks.
Hope that helps

 

[Ferret_Friend]

That would explain their lack of interest in the seeds. Guess we'll just have to wait until they're older on that one. I'm hoping that by the time I get home tomorrow, that piece of cantaloupe is completely gone. And hopefully the one live nightcrawler that's in the litter in the cage. I'd be super happy if that happened. At least the fruit though... that would make me feel a lot better.

All the feedback I was getting was pretty 50/50 on whether I should take them in or let nature run its course, so I figured I might as well at least try to help. I'm typically all for the survival of the fittest thing, but it's not their fault that the stupid birdhouse that I acquired when purchasing my home fell out of the tree.

 

[joannde]

See if there is a wildlife rehabilitator in your area - they specialize in saving young birds in the situation you fond. do a google on "wildlife rehabilitor" +yourtownname
I dont think the chicks will eat on their own - parent birds generally feed them at least until they fledge (fly) and oftentimes even for a period after that
Good luck with the babies