Bob's crabs

[BlueBolts]

Realise the wrong attention the thread name may have....sorry Bob. LOL

Received 5 beautiful purple native crabs from Bob, with instructions that they MUST be key in a concealed tank, as they will climb out. Decided to house them in a AR320, which was given to me on the previous day, and it seemed perfect to house the crabs....glass lid, hood etc...

Return late arvo and could only find 3/5 crabs in the tank....:-( and started a crab hunt.... Couldn't figure out how the crabs got out, then realise ...

After 45 minutes of searching the grounds, behind cupboards, etc....I gave up and was resigned to the fact that the 2 crabs have escaped and are gone ! :-(

But this evening, found all 5 in the tank ! What the ..... Will take pics of them tomorrow. Phew......they are either escape or are great conceal artist ?

[Squiggle]

Phew, I know how painful it can be looking for missing beauties :encouragement:

[Baccus]

Just incase the crabs do get some ideas and happen to find the gap at the leads might be worthwile rigging up some flyscreen across the gap. I know it makes it hard to do tank maintence then I have an AR320 myself. Or maybe pack the space with some alfoil.

Please show us some pics of Bob's crabs. LOL sorry the crabs Bob sent you.

[Steph2692]

Haha I know the feeling, I used to work in a fish and reptile shop and one day somehow one of the snakes got out.... We found him 2 days later in one of the rat cages.

2 weeks later 2 tarantulas went missing... We never found them...

also can't wait see the pictures of these crabs =)

[northboy]

Thanks for telling every one I have crabs LOL now I have to find a cure??

They will be fine in there so long as there is plenty of hiding places for when they shed

Bob

[OzShrimp]

not everyones so happy to be given crabs lol

[Squiggle]

Thanks for telling every one I have crabs LOL now I have to find a cure??

They will be fine in there so long as there is plenty of hiding places for when they shed

Bob

Wow Bob' date=' that comment doesn't help the thread heading any, lol, where do you hide your crabs? :confused:

[img']http://i1284.photobucket.com/albums/a580/Betta_lover/image-74_zps370eb8bc.jpg

[northboy]

Crabs 5cm across!! no chance of hiding them and now we have hijacked BBs thread, wrist smack for all of us LOL

Well he will just have to put photos all over the place so no one reads out Krap LOL.

Bob

[BlueBolts]

Not the greatest pics...... gonna re-scape the tank over the weekend, and will get more pics....

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2497[/ATTACH]

[northboy]

They will get way better colour than that, so have they hooked you yet? if not yet they will.

Hooked = fallen in love with them

Bob

[JPN07]

Yummy.. Chilli crab BB??? :victorious: Jks good looking crabs you got there Marcus.

[Squiggle]

Sexy looking crabs there dude, very cool :encouragement:

[CNgo2006]

Hahahaa Bob's crabs! LOL! On a serious note, don't you think your invertebrate addiction is getting out of hand BB? Although they are nice. I have some blue juvie yabbies if you want to expand that addiction of yours BB!

[BlueBolts]

Bob, havent handled them yet, thought Id give them a week to settle down before man handling them ?

JPNO7..... too small for chilli crabs....maybe deep fried with salt & pepper....bhahahaha...ONLY kidding BOB. :-)

[northboy]

Salt and Pepper crab yum!!

I know what you need next BB, Fresh water Jelly fish the are way cool!!!!!!!!!!!

It is amazing the comments I get when people find out I work for a Sea food wholesaler during the week, it is Do you still eat fish and when I answer YES they look horrified

Bob

[OzShrimp]

very cool just makes we wanna run out and get crabs! Dont see many people advertise that they have crabs very often though :P ? mainly shrimp and fish

[Squiggle]

very cool just makes we wanna run out and get crabs! Dont see many people advertise that they have crabs very often though :P

Duuude! You did that on purpose' date=' lmao :congratulatory:

[img']http://i1284.photobucket.com/albums/a580/Betta_lover/image-74_zpsff29b460.jpg

[northboy]

I always have some sort of Crabs LOL, must be my life style.

See what you started BB, well done

Seriously, Crabs Rock, I keep them with fish and have no noticeable losses, they breed in captivity easily, they can be handles and wont bight. They come in all sorts of colours. They DONT have to get out of water even though the can. there young are like baby Cray fish and when they come off mums tail they are ready to rock. I could go on and on and some times I do

Bob

[Squiggle]

Seriously' date=' Crabs Rock, I keep them with fish.

Bob[/quote']

Oh come on!! Lmao :encouragement:

[ninja]

Hey Bob, how about some pics of the colour variations available and also body shapes? Please

[northboy]

Seriously Crabs true freshwater ones are 95% vegetarian, that is just one of the Many Many bits of false info out there about them, Yes you can keep them with fish and I and many others up here do keep them with fish.

I would sell 100 a month at local Markets and 1 in 100 is a fish eater, the more people keeping crabs the better. Yes if a fish is injured they will nail it or dead ones they will eat.

The way there life cycle goes is, when they come up from there dry season retreat under ground they are hungry and eat leaves and the few dead fish they find and as the season progresses they eat Algae and leave, As the season starts to dry again and fish start to die they eat fish. That is there trigger to breed the increase in protein. Now they are conditioned they mate and get ready to go back under ground, at this time underground the female produces eggs and then the young hatch and stay with mother until it rains again and she lets them out from there underground home.

If the rain is late fewer larger young are released and if the rain is early there is lots of small young around.

Every one has to forget there preconceived or miss informed ideas about Fresh water crabs and give them a go, as said before when settled and when they don't feel threatened they don't bight.. There is 7 species on Cape York and one Agazissi has regional variations, some are stunning.

Bob

[Baccus]

I have often wondered about keeping fresh water crabs, there are a couple of types I have seen around here, but always figured they would escape my tank or eat my fish. Or even more annoyingly copy a crawtchie and destroy my plants.

How would a pair of these guys go in a 20L tank? Too small? I am guessing they would need all the standard fish products filters, heaters, lights etc. Do they need calcium blocks or even fairly hard water, or is usual water pretty good for them?

Damn you Bob you have got me wondering where I could fit a couple of crabs. Hmmmm, birthday coming up..... other half said he would never make the mistake of buying me a live animal again as a gift..... (last effort was a pair of rosa burkes and then he had to build me an avairy LOL) but he never said he wouldn't get me another tank :tears_of_joy:. Now its even harder to decide which I would prefer fresh water pipe fish, fresh water crabs or yet more shrimp and snails.

[northboy]

I get accused of all sorts of things I am not guilty of, but this time I am guilty.

Two in a 20 lt will be fine, they can climb if they want to so tight covers or tape across all lines and cords running into the tank. I keep a bit of Coral in the water because of the soft water up here, they also get Calcium from there food, frozen mixed Veg, peas, corn, capsicum, any thing except Potato, Sweet Potato and Lettuce, then about 10% Bits of Prawn and fish. they need 2 shelters to each animal for when the shed, they are soft an easily attacked by every thing.

I guess I know what to give you for a birthday present when you get up here Bacc!! then Hubby can not go off LOL.

Slackness will have to finish all the Articles I have on the go, one includes Crabs.

Crabs fall into two groups, Part time fresh water= the adults live full time in fresh and there lava go to the brackish/ salt to form in to crabs and swim back, there last moult the go to the bottom and stay as crabs, then continue there journey to the fresh water

Full time fresh are like cray fish and are readt to rock as soon as they hatch

They have vastly different egg sizes, small eggs in Fish, Crabs and Shrimp, under .8 mm= dependant on Salt water

Eggs over 1mm are fully formed and ready to go, this usually means they are full fresh water animals. There are variations on this and it is to long to go into.

Bob

[ninja]

BB, how are your crabs going mate?????

[BlueBolts]

Crabs are going great...I intended to re-scape their tank, but haven't done so......perhaps I'll do it now ????? Just waiting for the eagles game to start !!! Go the mighty EAGLES !