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Procambarus clarkii (Crayfish) in a freshwater aquarium
Crayfish can be kept as pets in freshwater aquariums. They are easy to feed and will eat what ever they can find like fish food, algae walfers, or whatever they can catch. So you will need to be careful that they don't eat your fish and aquarium plants. Their preferred food is shrimp pellets and vegetables.
Bluegill or bass make a better companion choice for the crayfish than smaller fish that can be caught and eaten. But if you have dwarf crayfish the larger fish could eat them.
Pet crayfish like to hide so if you have two much stuff on the bottom of your tank you might not see them much. But be sure to provide them something to hide under so they can feel safe in their surroundings.
Crayfish are excellent scavengers and will help keep your tank clean. They like to create mounds or trenches in the gravel on the bottom of your tank to make a barrow for themselves.
The dwarf crayfish (Cambarellus patzcuarensis) usually won't eat your aquarium plants and are fairly non-aggressive and can be kept with small fish. They only grow to 1.5 inches or less so make a better choice for fish tanks with small fish.
Be careful not to release your crayfish in the local streams since they could damage the local habitat. Crayfish come in many different colors. Blue, black, brown, red, pink, gray, green, yellow and purple.
Below are many excellent sources to find pet crayfish care and many types of cray fish for sale.
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Do you want something unusual in your fish tank? If so crayfish would make a nice addition and enhance your aquarium. Just make sure your fish are larger so they don't get eaten. However if the fish are a lot larger they will eat the crayfish so your tank creatures need to be carefully balanced so none will disappear. Crayfish like to eat vegetation but need more than this. Most fish stores sell shrimp pellets that they can eat and this should keep them in good health.Bluegill or bass make a better companion choice for the crayfish than smaller fish that can be caught and eaten. But if you have dwarf crayfish the larger fish could eat them.
Pet crayfish like to hide so if you have two much stuff on the bottom of your tank you might not see them much. But be sure to provide them something to hide under so they can feel safe in their surroundings. These tiny creatures will help to clean your tank because they are bottom feeders and will eat what fish discard. They also come in many different colors from blue to red. The ones that are sold in pet stores are usually really tiny and may only grow a little over an inch. Don't release these into the wild. If you get tired of them give them to your local pet store.
If you catch the ones from the wild they will grow larger. As a child these were the ones I kept as a pet. I would keep them for a couple of weeks and let them go again once I got tired of them. The best trick to catch them is to muddy the water. I swish my feet along the bottom of the creek causing the mud to come up and cloud the water. As soon as the water carried the cloudy water downstream I would hunt and sure enough these creatures would be out. They like the cover of darkness or muddy water so they can hide from their enemies. They feel safe and venture out of their hiding places when the water is dark.
You had to hunt fast as they will go back into hiding as the water clears. I would sometimes find several each time I muddied the water. I also had them as pets and never ate them. I would have been horrified to find someone catching them for dinner. However I know some do but hope my readers are of the "keeping them for pets" kind.
Crayfish made good additions to your fish tank. However you need to be careful that the fish aren't so small that the crayfish will harm them or that the fish so large they eat the crayfish.
The photo here shows a blue crayfish. You can find them in many colors from blue to white.
They will clean the bottom of the tank and eat whatever they find. They also eat plants and garbage along the bottom. This is why they are classified as unclean meat. They make a lot better pets then something on your plate.
What do these critters eat? Pet stores will sell shrimp pellets that will satisfy their hunger. It would also be good to give them a little green to eat like lettuce and such. Be sure to remove anything left over as it could cloud your aquarium water.
This photo shows one that was caught in the wild. If you catch one of these critters for your tank remember that will grow to around five to six inches so be prepared to have a large tank or let them go as they get to big for your aquarium.
Many pet stores sell dwarf crawfish that will stay small enough for most fish. They only grow to about an inch long. These are cute and won’t eat your average size fish.
If you get tired of them don’t ever let your creatures go in the wild. Either they will quickly die or else spread and could harm the local environment.
When I was a child I liked to catch them and keep them for awhile. The best way I found to catch these crawfish was to go to the local creek.
I would wade around and muddy the water. The crawfish would think that it was getting dark and safe to come out.
As soon as the water would clear enough for me to see they would be scrambling back under the rocks but not in time, enabling me to grab them.This pretty creature in the photo above would make a nice pet. It looks gold in color and I have never seen these for sale.
They are native to Alabama and Georgia in the United States and might show up on eBay once folks discover their nice color.
Susan Dietel
Web Programmer
Email:
susansdesign@yahoo.com
