Expectant Crayfish Mum

[donporter]

Hi again

I was trying to catch a pic of the babies as they are still attached to mum, but look a bit different.

Then I saw this little fella walking around. Sorry it's so blurry, but he's so tiny I nearly missed him.

 

[donporter]

Just a quick update....

There are 3 babies that are walking around now. I thought that the adult would eat them if she came across them, but they walk around feeding for a bit, and then climb back onto mum. Fascinating stuff

 

[kribensis12]

Awsomeness!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Please keep posting pic's

 

[iSnail]

They are so sweet Wish I had space for a Cray tank now Please keep us updated on the progress

 

[fish-aholic]

Wow. They are adorable! Good job I wonder when their colors will appear?

 

[chamberpot]

There are too many to count, but I estimate 50-60.
From these around 10 will probably survive after they have finished eating each other.

As soon as the babies were all walking around, I put both adults together again in a 40G tank and they mated immediately.
So in 2-3 months time the whole process starts again.

Here's a nice one of the female with the last 2 or 3 babies still attached.

 

[sarah86]

wow ive really enjoyed reading this thread its been fascinating! glad to see the babies are doing well keep the pics coming!

 

[chamberpot]

Hi again, I'm going on holiday for a few weeks so decided to give my crayfish tank a good clean. I've counted 40 babies and the biggest ones are about 2 cms long. These big boys are slowly eating the smaller ones. Hope there are some left when I get back at the end of the month.

Happy Christmas everyone and thank you for your interest and encouragement. Don xx

 

[sarah86]

wow they are growing fast, looking forward to seeing more pics in a few weeks time

 

[shroob]

Do the parents eat the young? Or do they leave them alone?

 

[chamberpot]

Do the parents eat the young? Or do they leave them alone?

The male was taken out of the tank as soon as the eyes appeared on the eggs, to avoid stressing the female.
As soon as all the babies had detached from the female, I took her out too.
It took 10 days for all the babies to drop off the female, so some are bigger than others.
The ones that started walking first used to hitch a ride from mum, and she didn't seem to mind this, but as soon as all of the young were walking I took the female out because she would have eaten them. The female shows some maternal instinct but it doesn't last long. 1-2 weeks usually.

 

[iSnail]

Love seeing the baby Crays. They are so cute . I can't believe they are showing the blue colour already. Look forward to seeing more pics in a few weeks. Have a lovely holiday!

 

[chamberpot]

Hi again. Got back from hols to find that there were only 12 left
Half of those look very healthy and the rest are missing a claw or a leg.
One poor thing has no claws and only 2 legs left, but he still manages to fend for himself.
They are about an inch long now, much bigger than when I left.
Sorry about the pics, I used my phone and the blue light was on in the tank. All the best, Don.

 

[luque]

wow cool thread, and well done