Red Crab Set-up

[ghent_3rd]

Thinking of setting up a small red crab only tank and would like some advice on the filtering, heating and general landscaping of the tank?

Any advice or websites would be great.

 

[raptorrex]

Thinking of setting up a small red crab only tank and would like some advice on the filtering, heating and general landscaping of the tank?

Any advice or websites would be great.

Sesarma Bidens or red claw/red crab, are land creatures, though they need access to Brackish water.
in an ideal world, you would keep them in a "Crab Lodge". with about 2/3 land and 1/3 water. in truth, though, they will happily live in a tank with nothing more than a stick poking through the surface. but it must be brackish. they are dirty buggers, so you will need a good filter. a tight fitting lid and a heat lamp. and you are up and running.
they eat anything (dead). when younger they need a descent protein source(meat) along with veg and a few "crab" pellets. as they age things change, they have a typical omnivore diet, so the vest bulk should be veg.

 

[ghent_3rd]

boboboy, don't know if you use Ocean Commotion in Leicester but I am sure I have seen them keep some red crabs in Freshwater?? Tey don't have any brackish set-up at all??

Is this a different type of crab or is it the brackish ones, just poorly kept?

 

[raptorrex]

boboboy, don't know if you use Ocean Commotion in Leicester but I am sure I have seen them keep some red crabs in Freshwater?? Tey don't have any brackish set-up at all??

Is this a different type of crab or is it the brackish ones, just poorly kept?

sadly many LFS keep these guys in fresh water. incidental i got my first Red crabs, from Ocean Commotion . but they are the same crab, and really do need brackish. it can be as low a 1ppm salt.

 

[TylerFerretLord]

I know this is a bit late, but I just came across this page and thought I should post it.

http/translate.google.com/translate?hl=e...s1Zdqb7775l8%3D

 

[raptorrex]

I know this is a bit late, but I just came across this page and thought I should post it.

[URL="http/translate.google.com/translate?hl=e...s1Zdqb7775l8%3D"]http/translate.google.com/translate?hl=e...s1Zdqb7775l8%3D[/URL]

cool find Tyler

 

[Kevin_D]

I agree, thats a great forum. The members there are very knowledgeable about crabs, i'd recommend joining if your interested in crabs, theres lots of info on the forum.

 

[ghent_3rd]

That site is awesome!!! Some quality pics on there. Especially love the bottom one with the slanted bank in it. Looks so realistic, I have got so many ideas for my new tanks it is unreal!!!!

 

[lordofthesea]

those tanks on that german website are gonna take loads of time and money!!! my crab tank has a slope of gravel with a large beach at one end and a piece of wood half in half out of water (they love it - they hide under it and even eat bits of it!) a filter with a spray bar (the water only comes a quarter way up the tank) and a load of platic plants with most of their leaves out of the water. A bit of advice from one crab keeper to another - don't bother shelling out for real plants mine ate them all in a week even the java fern. they are great little animals but beware - they make alot of waste so hold your breathe when cleaning the filter; its gonna stink!!! if you can get them (they're hard to come by) feed Hikari crab pellets mine love them - they also love boiled lettuce. hope this helps.

 

[raptorrex]

those tanks on that german website are gonna take loads of time and money!!! my crab tank has a slope of gravel with a large beach at one end and a piece of wood half in half out of water (they love it - they hide under it and even eat bits of it!) a filter with a spray bar (the water only comes a quarter way up the tank) and a load of platic plants with most of their leaves out of the water. A bit of advice from one crab keeper to another - don't bother shelling out for real plants mine ate them all in a week even the java fern. they are great little animals but beware - they make alot of waste so hold your breathe when cleaning the filter; its gonna stink!!! if you can get them (they're hard to come by) feed Hikari crab pellets mine love them - they also love boiled lettuce. hope this helps.

lol the site does seem to have very, complicated/imaginative, solutions to the problems. few of those ever occurred to me, as they don't have any way of keeping the land area damp. (lol, they may do, its just reading badly translated German is not my forte) they do look fantastic though!! i guess how much you are prepared to spend, depends on how "into" the hobby you are.
there may be a few "apparent" short cuts. but building a natural environment, for any critter, is never cheap.

ignoring the cost of the tank and filter, you should be able to make one for £15-45. one of the most expensive bits, often forgotten, is a heat lamp. as red crab seem to view the water much like Elizabethan nobility did. (a necessary evil)