Help with a Crayfish

5150Jim
  • #1
PetCo gave me a Crayfish for a $1 donation because it came in a shipment of goldfish and they didn’t know what else to do with it.
Crayfish, also known as crawfish, crawdads, freshwater lobsters, or mudbugs, are freshwater crustaceans resembling small lobsters, to which they are related; taxonomically, they are members of the superfamilies Astacoidea and Parastacoidea.
And that’s about what I know about Crayfish other than I ate about 8 or 10 of them 13 yrs ago camping at Lake Almanor. We named it Fred so I would think about eating him… lol
No… I wouldn’t eat him because there’s not enough lol
Sorry, I’m sure some won’t like I sense of humor.
Well back to Fred. He is awesome to watch because I have him (not sure if it male or female) in the 50 gallon tank but I put (1) Long Finned Zebra Danio & (3) Long Fin Leopard Danios in there with him. Big mistake. He got all 4 fish in no time flat. So now I have a Bala Shark, Red tail Shark & 1 each Neon Blue Dwarf Gourami, Power Blue Dwarf Gourami, Opaline Gourami, Blue Dwarf Gourami, Golden Dwarf Gourami & that have been in there with no problems since the 8[SUP]th[/SUP]. Well I do need to report that the Red tail Shark is missing the top part of his red tail. Not certain if it is because of Fred but I wouldn’t rule him out.
So I guess my question is, does anyone have any crayfish & what other things should I know about them?
I did find this:
Crayfish kept as pets in the US from local waters are usually kept with bluegill or bass, rather than goldfish or tropical or subtropical fish. They prefer foods like shrimp pellets or various vegetables, but will also eat tropical fish food, regular fish food, algae wafers, and small fish that can be captured with their claws. They will sometimes consume their old exoskeleton after it has moulted. Their disposition towards eating almost anything will also cause them to explore the edibility of aquarium plants in a fish tank. However, most species of dwarf crayfish, such as Cambarellus patzcuarensis, will not destructively dig or eat live aquarium plants. They are also relatively non-aggressive and can be kept safely with dwarf shrimp. Because of their very small size of 1.5 inches (38 mm) or less, some fish are often a threat to the crayfish.
Since crayfish are accustomed to being in ponds or rivers, they will have a tendency to shift gravel around on the bottom of the tank, creating mounds or trenches to emulate a burrow. Crayfish will often try to climb out of the tank, especially if an opening exists at the top that they can fit through.


But you know you can't always believe what you read on the internet WIKI things.
As for the tank, it is a 50 gallon with the National Geographic™ Deluxe Programmable LED Aquarium Light with a Tetra Whisper air pump model 30-60 & an air wand. A 200 watt Aqueon aquarium heater & 80lbs of sand. The filter is a Sunsun HW-402B w/UV.
TNX, Jim
 

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1971roadrunner
  • #2
OK, here goes...I had a blue cray, (in a prior 80g) that I kept overfed and only one KIA for 10 months. He started off tiny but grew fast then almost over night started going after the bottom fish with some fin tears from the guy. I passed him off to a good home and glad I did but wish I could have kept him. They are awesome to behold but IMO not worth it for the types of fish you have him with. On the other hand I keep a lot of fish together that I should not but in large tanks-do your research. Hope this helps.

*hope your runnin' loud pipes on that sled of yours Jim!
 

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5150Jim
  • Thread Starter
  • #3
He hasn't eaten an fish for a few days now but I have been catching flies & hand feeding them to him kind of. I have some grabbers from PetCo for moving things around in the tank & it works. I just move slowly towards him & he takes it. And it looks like all the fish know he's there & stay out of his reach. So we'll see.

"I sold the RR yrs ago"
 
1971roadrunner
  • #4
Yeah that sounds right. I only lost one but the nervousness set in and he had to go in part also 'cause the novelty factor wore off as well. They're great to watch and enjoy your new cray.

* I meant on that bike of yours. ttyl
 
5150Jim
  • Thread Starter
  • #5
Yes, they are loud lol
 

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