freshwater crabs

[valerie]

Hi, I'm looking for some information as i can't seem to find what i'm looking for on the web. I recently got a 5gal for free and am thinking i could do fish but would rather do somethign a bit different. I'm looking into crabs. I cna't find many web pages that telly ou what type of tank they need, most just tell you what size the crab will get.

I"m interested in red claw crabs(or does anyone know of another crab taht staays small) since they are small and one should be ok in a 5g.

Can someone tell me what type of water they like,some places say brackish some say fresh. Also i'm going to set it up so that there is a little land sticking out, so the crab can get air. basically i'm looking for someone who keeps crabs to tell me whathas worked for them(or what web pages are useful)

Thanks

[bizzy928]

In one 5 gallon I have a small simple filter from WalMart powered by an air pump.

I have to rocks leaning on each other with parts above water.

i have one male fiddler crab, one female fiddler crab and one red claw crab.

I don't add any salt to the water and they are fine.

The red claw crab LOVES to hand out near the filter because where he places himself, the bubbles foam up so its like a bubble bath for him. he also spends most of his time above water.

he just molted tonight actually

sorry for the lack of details but if you have any more question I will be happy to answer them.

i'm kinda in a rush.

[valerie]

Do you know of where i might find some info about these crabs?

Aren't fiddles saltwater crabs?Can you tell me a bit more about these guys, how big do they get?

I remember seeing a crab at the LFS before called a patriot crab, it was red and blue.Anyone know anythign about these?

How come there aren't any good sites about inverts like there are fish? I haven't been able to find one with any decent info:confused: and for a person like me that needs to research everythign before i buy it i'm going crazy!

[RENEGADE]

i had a hard time finding info too but this is what i found:http://www.geocities.com/elgecko1989/crab.html

i'm not sure about this one because it says RCC don't need to come up for air and thats wrong!http://wrongcrowd.com/aquaria/crab/

[valerie]

Thanks, I had read the second link already but the first one was helpful. So should i add salt to the water or keep it fresh? Everythign i have read says both that they are fresh water or brackish. It doesn't really matter since they will be the only thing in the tank(maybe a few feeder guppies to add movement to the water but they can take salt). Also do you think 1 or 2 would be better in a 5g?

Do they like current? as i'm going to have a sponge hooked up to my powerhead as a filter and the powerhead is rated for a 20g(i think there is a switch to turn it down though).

[Dragon_Lord_Tia]

5 gallons that tiny anyways i recomend feeder mollys they can with stand the salt better thn guppys just in case the crabs dont eat them for a few days
a power head for a little tank would create a large current even if its turned down

im setting up a tank(20 gallon) for some crabs with a vitaaqua 200 filter i think thats what its called that would be the est bet for your tank

[valerie]

Yeah i thought the powerhead would be too much current.I will test it out and see though. I'm still in he early planning stges so the crab idea might change :D I'm not even sure i would add any fish

Some other ideas i have been thinking about is a betta or thread fin rainbow, or dwarf puffer. But I'm jsut researching them all to see which will work best. If i can't decide i might leave it open for a while, maybe jsut use the tank for fry.

Thanks for the help,keep the crab info coming

[elgecko]

RENEGADE,
Thanks for helping to get my page out there. It disappeared out of the google search awhile ago. My fault, went to the java script menu and google can not follow those links. Added a site map to some of my pages so when google visits again it will index all my fish pages again, hopefully. Anyway....

valerie,
Glad you found my web page helpful.
I have heard of other people keeping there crabs in freshwater, but I heard people saying that you will most likely shorten the lives of the crabs. I can tell you that my crabs are doing extremely well in there brackish water. They are fun to watch when they are out, but mine, if they see movement will run for cover.:mad: I see in your last post you mention a puffer. I hope not with a crab. Puffers eat crabs.
Good luck on whatever decision you make.
Any other suggestions you can think of for my crab site that might help others out?

[valerie]

I wouldn't add a puffer with the crab.All those ideas were for one or the other, not together.

For adding salt to the tank,how much should i add?1Tbsp/10g?1Tbsp/5g? i don't want to have to buy a hydrometer(i think thats it) to measure the salt content.

I still haven't decided where to fil the tank with somethin or leave it open for possible future fry.

Thanks for your help, i really found your website helpful. And if i dochoose red clawed crabs would it be ok if i PMed you with some questions if they come up?Thanks again:D

[elgecko]

valerie,

You would be able to PM with any questions about crabs you would have.

If you were planning on doing a brackish tank, I think a hydrometer would be necessity. Otherwise your salt content could fluctuate every water change and cause stress on your fish.

[RENEGADE]

elgecko, sure no problem IMO you site is the best for crabs(i found it on google) you got a awsome site