crayfish and crab question?

[d1anonly22]

so today i got two crayfish(crawdads) at are local lake, and i was curious if they would kill my red clawed crab? i figured my fiddler crab was an easy kill for them but wasnt sure about my reds. i pulled the crayfish out when one started fight with my reds and i put them in my 50 gallon cichlid tank. if they dont get eaten i will probaly keep them in there but just want to know if one could go ack with the crabs.

 

[Wycco]

I don't know the answer- but unless an expert will say it's safe I'd say don't risk it.

Crayfish will kill anything they can- and if they can't the crab could hurt them when they molt. Crayfish are aggressive.

 

[E's_Crab_Shack]

I wouldnt do it. Dont you already have two males in there anyways?

 

[SubRosa]

Crayfish species vary greatly in aggression. Can you post pics of the crays?

 

[kyryah]

Fiddlers and red claws - Brackish.

Crayfish - Freshwater.

Kristina

 

[SubRosa]

Many crays are found in brackish water.

 

[Wycco]

Fiddlers and red claws - Brackish.

Crayfish - Freshwater.

Kristina

That's actually a very good point- I hadn't considered that when looking at this post! LOL...

 

[Wycco]

Many crays are found in brackish water.

He said they were from a local lake. Unless it is a "brackish lake"- but if they were brackish then that doesn't explain why they're in the Cichlid tank now.

 

[SubRosa]

I actually misspoke when I said there are brackish crays. I've caught them up and down the east coast over the years and often in areas that were tidal, but I doubt that salinities were as high as what the typical brackish tank is kept at. Tolerance for salinity is genetic. If a species has populations that are found in saltier water the odds are good that individuals found in straight fw can adapt to it. Think about most Sailfin Mollies. They've been in fw captivity for countless generations, bred for color and finnage as opposed to hardiness and yet you can still easily acclimate them to sw. It's just the way they're put together.