Breeding Crabs

[rabidric]

Hi All

I've got an Orca nano tank which amongst other things is home to a pair of pom pom crabs, aka boxing crabs, who have somehow managed to produce a sizeable clutch of eggs. HELP! I guess that as the crabs are small the youngsters will be tiny and therefore food for the other inhabitants so I was wondering if there was anything I could do to improve their chances of survival. The female is carrying the eggs round at the moment as per normal for crabs so should I get her out until they hatch or is the likelihood of them surviving so bad that it wouldn't be worth the effort. I'd like to bring some of them along to approaching adulthood if possible but can't find anything anywhere about what to do.

thanks

 

[eschaton]

As far as I know, no one has successfully raised crab larvae, though some people have raised shrimp larvae.

To raise them, you'll need to do two things.

1. The easy bit is to remove them to their own, bare-bottom tank. Make sure it doesn't have a power-head, only a bubble filter.

2. The hard bit is finding stuff for them to eat. If they're like most marine larvae, they'll need tiny live rotifers when they hatch. You can pick these up online, but they're pricey, and you'll have to culture them yourself.

 

[Musho3210]

you can buy concentrated, or live. Live you culture yourself but its more of a one time buy if you have time to culture them. Concentrated is what it is, just really concentrated, costs a bit more in the long run, may not be as nutritous, but its a quick and easy way to get a lot on your hands at once. IMO i wouldnt bother trying to raise the crabs.