Your Experience with crayfish

I've had some experience with crayfish (crawdads) on two different occasions. My first experience was a wild caught one from Arkansas that I took home (California) and stuck in my tank and he lived a long time until my brother stuck some plant crystals that suck water up and killed everything in the tank (I was about 9 and loved the fish tank, lets just say I made him VERY sorry for doing that).

The second time I was very unlucky/lucky (how ever you want to look at it) and got a crawdad from my neighbor in germany who got them from the fish store. He was missing one claw so I took it. Well, after a couple of months I had about 4 baby crayfish. A couple months later I had 1 great crayfish, 4 parent crayfish and about 10 baby crayfish. After doing some research I came to find out I had a self procreating species. It was a pretty thing until I got tired of them making babies without permission. They are called Marmorkrebs or marbled crawdads.
 
I had the same type as Roan and I really enjoyed him...He live in a 110 gal tank with two mature Oscars...I got lucky though...The Oscars were not interested in eating him and he was too small to do any dammage... If I was to keep them again, I would have one in a "species tank....They are kind of funny to watch... dragging things around and blocking off their cave when going to take a nap...
 
My crayfish is my favorite, but he does cause issues. One of my white clouds disappeared the other day and either he or the RCC is the likely culprit.

I would suspect the fish had a problem, and the crayfish or crab finished it off, as they're really not very fast...

In any tank with a crayfish as aforementioned avoid bottom dwellers (especially fish who sleep or rest near the bottom).

Some species grow quite large, mine is about 6.5 inches from claw to tail.

They are entertaining to watch. Mine likes to crawl out of the water on branches I have in the tank occasionally. He hunts the pond snails that have infiltrated my tank.

I also lost one to escape. Your tank need to be extremely secure without any holes (even if you think it couldn't reach a point of egress, TRUST me, it can and will). This problem renders HOB filters effectively useless for a crayfish tank.
 
I've had two wild (in New Jersey) crayfish similar to the one pictured in eco's avatar. I lost each on seperate occasions while they were molting. One was eaten by an African knife, the other by a bullhead. Each fish was only about 1.5 times the crayfish in size. IMO they're better suited to their own tank.
 
Well, I didn't read any of the previous posts, but here comes my contri:

1- Went to the LFS and saw crayfish.
2- Came to AC and researched.
3- Decided a 20 gl. tank for 2 crayfish.
4- Brought them to my house. Installed them in the 20.
5- Went to the LFS to return the bucket they kindly lended me.
6- Came home and watched them. One is shy and the other throws his pinches at me. I make funny faces at him.
7- Next morning, took out two pieces of shrimp from the fridge and fed one to each. The agressive one took it right form the forceps. The other was scared, so I just left the thing in the bottom.
8- Both ate. I'm fine.
9- Two days later, the agressive one is found dead. Murder is suspected.
10- An emergency leak requires moving. The remaining crayfish goes to a 10 gl. spare tank without hood.
11- I wake up at 3 AM. Something won't let me sleep. I go to check and the cray is gone. Look in the room: nothing. Keep searching and find him about 30 ft. away from the tank, treathening me with his pinchs.
12- I claim: Go back to the tank, you rascaly invertebrate!!!! He won't listen to me, so I grab him by the torax and walk him to the tank.
14- Emergency is gone. New set up require moving the crayfish to a community gouramy-angelfish tank.
15- Six weeks since, crayfish live there, causing no problem. Feeding regularly and living inside his cave. A shrimp the happens to live there won't be even noticed.

:)
 
patoloco said:
Well, I didn't read any of the previous posts, but here comes my contri: . . .
12- I claim: Go back to the tank, you rascaly invertebrate!!!! He won't listen to me, so I grab him by the torax and walk him to the tank.
Click to expand...
I hope you used handcuffs! Bad cray, BAD!

:joke:

Roan
 
Well after reading everyones experiences I picked up a cobalt blue today at petco and set him up his own ten gallon with a couple of platy's. Hes only about an inch and a half right now but im sure he'll grow quick with all I read. I gave him a piece of pvc to hide in but he seems unintested at this point hes buisily makeing a burrow under the clay pot thats in his tank. Ill post some pics as soon as I get them.
 
I have a 4 inch cobalt blue in a 20g tank with 3 cory's, 8 misc tetra's, 1 red clawed crab, 1 neon blue dwarf gourami. They all seem to get along well, I'll admit this setup is getting a bit crowded which is why I have plans for a 55g in my very near future.
The most interaction I'll ever see is if one of my cory's gets a little too close to the lobster, the lobster will sort of flinch at them and they quickly swim away, I think they sort of know not to get to close though.
The red clawed crab is neat. He's only 1 inch and fits into a hole in a piece of driftwood I have. I rarely see him except when it's feeding time you'll see his red claws come out to grab at the food floating by his hole.
 
Are you sure what you got at petco is a cobalt blue? I've seen "blue lobsters" at petco but not cobalt blues. they may be the same thing, but since they don't tell you exactly what it is I wouldn't take the chance. But, then again, maybe your petco is better than mine. How much did you pay btw?
 
I didn't get mine at petco, I got it a place near me that's not one of the major chains, it has a lot of neat and unusual pets. The guy told me it was a cobalt blue but I suppose he could be wrong. I got their last one in stock and I haven't seen any more there in my last 2 visits. It cost me $24.
I've had it about 2 weeks and it molted on the 2nd day I had it... I saw the molt lying behind a rock and immediately thought it had died on me because it totally looked like another lobster : ) Then I saw it come out of its cave and I was like, huh? then I realized what had actually happened.
 
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