Dwarf Crayfish

[Wycco]

Would you recommend Dwarf Cajun Crayfish with Dwarf Shrimp and/or smaller community fish (1½ to 2½ inches) and snails in a planted aquarium kept at 77F in the winter- 80F most of the year but occasionally spikes to 82F in the afternoons when it is really hot outside.

Water is moderately soft- I'm already conditioning it to make it not "rediculously soft". pH stays about 7.2ish.

There are lots of plants and LOTS of hiding places- (I went a little overboard making caves out of sanded-down broken pieces of slate and silicoln glue).


I had previously thought Crayfish were off-limits to anything but species tanks but recently have read that Dwarf Cajun Crayfish can be added to a community tank.

 

[bettabrat]

I don't see why not. As long as the tank is the proper size, and you keep the water params in check. You will most likely want to supplement the water with calcium which can be provided in many forms...snail jello is fine food wise but you want to harden up the water a bit for animals w/a shell. Most don't do well in soft water although SOME sp of shrimp do. You can add crushed coral in a media bag or use as a substrate, baking soda, cuttle bones, plaster of paris blocks etc. Otherwise your crays and shrimp could have a hard time molting and your snails may face shell erosion. I would not keep a cray in with cichilds but small fish such as tetras, guppies, etc should be fine and the calcium shouldn't bother them.

 

[Wycco]

Yeah... I've already experimented with the snail jello on my MTS (crushed 5 berry flavoured tums into a baby food flavour my daughter refused at the time... banana- mango)... they didn't take to it at first but now they flock to it- they cover it so much you can't see the jello- just a mass of snail shells!!!!


So I've got some ready for my shrimp when they arrive (and crawfish should I get some).


I tried plaster of paris pucks too... until I realised that MY plaster of paris wasn't safe for fish... I was curious why my PoP said it was quick-dry and what that meant... in summary it had nasty stuff in it- so I fished it out and did a water change (even though I was cycling).

I'll get some regular PoP at some point.


Water out the tap is extremely soft. After adding Fert tabs- DIY CO2 and Leaf Zone I was droppde down to 0KH!!!!!

I've stabalised it some by adding liquid calcium for the GH and Baking Soda for the KH and I've got up to 50ppm KH... which is still on the soft side... but I'm cautious about altering my water chemistry TOO much as I know the more I fiddle with what comes out the tap the more likely I am to shock my aquatic friends.




So Dwarf Crayfish really are community inhabitants! Excellent... my son spent forever watching them at Super Pets last time I was there... at least I hope those were Dwarf Crayfish- I'll have to go back and check- when I saw them I thought Crayfish wern't an option... now I'm psyched about them after learning they CAN be community members.

 

[bettabrat]

Yeah they are pretty peaceful little critters. I have not kept that type of crayfish specifically but I keep other crays. I know some of the other members on the forum keep them, and to my understanding do fine w/fish given hiding places etc.

It's VERY important to have enough calcium so they can crack their shells when it's time to molt. I can't stress this enough. Also water quality is very important, keep it clean and stable. As long as you provide them with something as a supplement I think you should be alright given your water conditions, just keep an eye on them...you will know if something is wrong. Crays may change color or hide an aweful lot if they are stressing. Stability is a real key don't mess with too many chemicals if you need to buffer a media bag w/crushed coral in the filter is really helpful. MTS are really hardy so you would prob see signs of stress in them last, the crays and shrimp first.

DAP brand POP is the good stuff, make sure it doesn't have any of those nasty additives. I got a 25lb bag for like $15 which will last me FOREVER! I also use crushed cuttle bones in the water because I have them around the house for the bird. And I also feed snail jello the crays might appreciate a non-fruity flavor LOL I make a meaty version for mine worms, krill, brine shrimp, etc w/some veggie sticks ground in.

Anyway good luck!

 

[Wycco]

Yeah... I experimented with the banana first because it is something my daughter turned her nose up at and would have been thrown away otherwise!

Sounds like Crays require much the same care as shrimp (no surprise there).

Besides Dwarf Cajun and Dwarf Mexican are there any other compatible crayfish- or are the others all pretty much off limits for a planted community tank.

 

[vampie]

I'd assume most of the other dwarf species (Ditch fencers, patzcuarensis, hinei, diminutus, puer, etc) would work in community settings as well.

Keep in mind that they don't play nice with one another though. One of the mistakes I've seen some shrimp keepers make when starting with dwarf crays is dropping a wafer in and assuming they'd all share it.