# Dwarf Crayfish!



## spypet (Sep 15, 2006)

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/shrimp/57557-cambarellus-shufeldtii-my-saga.html


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## Wasserpest (Jun 12, 2003)

If you feed them they are pretty shrimp safe, if not, they might snatch one here and there, but with the Cherries being as abundant it usually isn't a problem. 

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/photo-album/55552-struggle-jungle-how-balance-your-tank.html

The males can be pretty aggressive towards the girls. Looks like I lost all my females, the last one I spotted had her claws cut off. And that's in a pretty large surface and lotsahidingplaces 36gal.

So if you have multiple tanks and spot a berried one you might want to consider moving it.


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## OhNo123 (Jan 8, 2008)

Thanks for the tip Wasser. Do you think she would be okay in a breeder cage or would she be okay in a 10g with 2 male guppies, 4 cories, and 3 apple snails? Not as much hiding spots though.


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## Wasserpest (Jun 12, 2003)

I think the 10gal tank would be the better solution. Sounds like none of the inhabitants would pose a risk to momma cray and vice versa.

But keep monitoring things in your current tank. Maybe they all get along real well, and it was just that muh boys were a bit rough.


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## epicfish (Sep 11, 2006)

I throw tons of plants into my 5.5 gallon breeding tank. Java moss, guppy grass...etc. The berried females always tend to hid underneath my sponge filter though, for protection.


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## moogoo (Dec 7, 2007)

are the electric blue lobsters (crayfish really) safe for planted tanks? Do they create problems due to their burrowing?


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## spypet (Sep 15, 2006)

moogoo, the older and larger they get, the more they will 
rearrange the furniture and actively hunt other tank mates.
I find that keeping a 2" gutter of space between the plants
and all walls of your tank, helps reduce this plant molestation.


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## OhNo123 (Jan 8, 2008)

So.. I spent 15 minutes of my life watching my crays yesterday. During feeding time yesterday, my crays didnt get any food. I guess they were too shy, so I target feeded them yesterday by dropping the pellet close to them. 

Story TIME!
I broke 2 pellets into 4 pieces and dropped them about 4" apart from each other. 
1 male gets to one and starts eating it. The other male approaches another one, but before he could get there, the momma crayfish came out of her driftwood hole. She fought off both the guys. Apparently she was too afraid to walk 4" away from her hole, so I never saw her get a pellet. There was a pellet in the java moss above the driftwood, but she couldn't climb up there. So I dont know if she ate last night or not. She tried to find another way to the top of driftwood which is a hole that leads to the top. She climbs halfway up the hole and comes back out and returns to her hole. Soon after, a cray comes out. The largest one of my four. At first I was like hey, its probably the daddy and he wants some food. But when it finally come out all the way, it was berried too... So now I have 2 berried females and 2 males I guess? The two females engaged in battle too, but it seems like a draw since they both turned away. 

Today's story.
I dropped in a 1/16 of an algae wafer so the one of the moms could eat it. She came out of her hole and took it and then went back.

Then, I looked at the back of my tank and I saw a male cray. He was kind of like hiding? And infront of him was a berried cherry shrimp. He tried to dash for it, but was wayy tooo slow. 

One of the moms was trying to look for food today when I dropped in the wafer. She couldn't find anything so she grabbed a 1/2" trumpet snail and tried to it.. live... She picked it up and spun it around so the trapdoor was at her mouth and she started eatting it. The snail went deeep into his snail though. He was safe. 

That ends my stories. I'll find time someday and acclimate them to my 10g with the guppies/cories/ snails. 

Oh yeah, I forgot to add that I actually 3 females in that tank too. Except them are in a betta barrack because I don't want the two strains to interbreed. I will be getting another tank sometime to hopefully separate the strains.


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## moogoo (Dec 7, 2007)

spypet said:


> moogoo, the older and larger they get, the more they will
> rearrange the furniture and actively hunt other tank mates.
> I find that keeping a 2" gutter of space between the plants
> and all walls of your tank, helps reduce this plant molestation.




interesting. I guess i'll wait on getting them then. don't want to continually monitor their actions. Maybe one day when I set up a cichlid tank.


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## OhNo123 (Jan 8, 2008)

Well.. it seems like one of the moms share a hole with a dad. Hmm.. interesting.


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## OhNo123 (Jan 8, 2008)

Well one mom had her babies.. I counted at least 40. The other mom escaped from the breeder box and is inside the tank somewhere now.. I have to find her before she gives birth inside the tank!


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## Wasserpest (Jun 12, 2003)

Wowza, that's a lot of 'em. Congratulations! :bounce:


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## OhNo123 (Jan 8, 2008)

Yup! Just found the other mom. Hiding in the driftwood as usual. Took her out and stuck her in the breeder box. Looks like shes almost about to have babies as well. You can see the two dots for the eyes pretty clearly.


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## spypet (Sep 15, 2006)

The timetable I noticed from my recent litter was;
if you see both eyes, but the rest of the bodies are clear,
then you still have 3-4 days to go. once eyes blur and
the clear mass is a frosty white, that's when the fry's
carapaces are hardening, and are ready to be let loose.
give the mother a full 24 hours to shake them all loose
after you see the first fry is free. anyone stuck to her
after that, won't come off till she molts a week later.

40 is a very high litter. you might want to take a photo
of them, and recount. my second litter was only 25.


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## OhNo123 (Jan 8, 2008)

Well.. the babies look transparent and the mom already shot out some babies. Maybe like 5 or so. 

I'll update after shes done. After shes done, I'll give her a week or two back in the tank and after that, shes going into another tank with my other dwarf crays.


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## ksimdjembe (Dec 19, 2013)

generally the larger crays are plant eaters. I've not been able to keep larger crays with plants. dwarf crays are a different tory


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