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Old January 6th, 2007, 11:07 AM
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jeepers43229 jeepers43229 is offline
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question about fiddler crabs

i have 55 gallon tank and early on we got a fiddler crab. love him he did this weird little ymca dance and was very active. ever couple days he would retreat to the floating plants (which i know is normal) and hang out for a few hours. since we liked him so much i researched them and spoke with the fish store and decided to get another one (female). since we brought her in now niether crab has come down from the floating plants, i can honestly say i havn't seen them in the water for weeks. does anyone know why this may be? any insight would be very appreciated thx L
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  #2  
Old January 7th, 2007, 01:56 AM
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MyBirdIsEvil MyBirdIsEvil is offline
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Sorry, I haven't kept fiddler crabs myself, so I'm not expert, but that does not really seem like strange behavior. Most fiddler crabs prefer to be on land part of the time and in the water part of the time, so optimally you'd want to have something for them to sit on out of the water (such as rocks, a floating platform, etc.)
Every time I've been to the beach I've seen lots of them runining around near the motels, so it seems like they're sometimes out of water a large portion of the time.

Also, is this a fresh water aquarium? Fiddler crabs are either brackish or fully saltwater crustaceans, so they won't live out their life in freshwater and will eventually become weak and die.

Here's a website that has a bit of info and some links:
http://exoticpets.about.com/cs/rares...ddlercrabs.htm
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Old January 8th, 2007, 07:17 PM
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Sneaky Sneaky is offline
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Hi there,
yep a couple things you should know.
Firstly, fiddler crabs are a saltwater species, that can be
kept in brackish water, but not full freshwater. Their longevity in
freshwater is estimated at 6 months to 1 year where in salt or brackish
water can live up to 7 years or so.

Secondly, fiddler crabs need to be able to get out of the water.
You need a log, rock, beach ,etc, for them to be able to fully exit the water at various times.

Thirdly, fiddler crabs can and will catch and eat small fish, so be aware
of this possibility, as well as the fact that many fish, including catfish like pictus, raphael, synodontis, and various fish like cichlids, loaches, and some larger tetras, will hunt, kill, and eat crabs.

Hope this helps.
Myself, I would probably keep them only in a salt or brackish water
"crabitat", which consists of 50% land and 50% water.
A single pair of fiddlers would be suitable in a 5 or 10g tank by themselves.
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Old June 22nd, 2008, 11:21 PM
guywithcrabs guywithcrabs is offline
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Beware of pet stores when buying crabs

I bought some crabs, set them up in a nice tank 60/40 water and land. I conditioned the tap water and every thing worked out great. Stopping at this web site and learning to care for them was the best thing I did. Pet stores sometimes keep them in freshwater tanks (ask!) and the crabs can go home with you already a little comprimised (health wise), its not necessarily a reason not to buy them, but the pet store wasnt forthcoming with the above information about "Brackish water" the store I shopped here in vancouver, would rather they only live 6 months and sell me more later rather than they live longer lives.

I am glad I did my homework because they are very cool and they provide hours of entertainment to us as well as the cat and dog like to watch them as they wave. I think they are trying to tell us something, but so far all I have disiphered is something about a comet and the end of the world.

They are easy to care for and great little friends

We named ours Hellboy and Abe Sapien.

Get advice on crab care from a book or online not from the pet store, some of them might not have your best interests at the front of thier mind, just the almighty buck!

Sad but true
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Old June 23rd, 2008, 12:53 PM
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well said guywithcrabs!! having just returned from the beach... they are quite interesting although i would think a 5g or 10g would be much too small. a 20g long though would suit just fine.

-ashley
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Old September 19th, 2008, 04:02 PM
sloan7742 sloan7742 is offline
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Question

i have a few questions about my new fiddler crab
1)when i got her she had one claw is that going to be a problem
2)she wont eat anything i give her;should i put it in a bowl or in the tank or somewhere else
3)i have put a big rock in her tank and a floating peice of wood but she will not get out of the water
4)she wont let me even get close to touching her and when she sees me she runs and hides
5)if i actually get a chance to hold her are they safe to hold like will she pinch me or something
6)do i need to give her fresh water to drink
7)if the water is a little to cold will that hurt her
please help me
and if u have any other info on how to care for her i would love to hear it
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Old September 19th, 2008, 04:27 PM
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want4rain want4rain is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by sloan7742 View Post
i have a few questions about my new fiddler crab
1)when i got her she had one claw is that going to be a problem
shouldnt be!! i think they grow back!

Quote:
2)she wont eat anything i give her;should i put it in a bowl or in the tank or somewhere else
what are you feeding her?

Quote:
3)i have put a big rock in her tank and a floating peice of wood but she will not get out of the water
does she have any sand to get out or dig in?? what sort of set up do you have?? how large is the tank? lighting?? salinity?? what sort of salt are you using??

Quote:
4)she wont let me even get close to touching her and when she sees me she runs and hides
you are a big predator!! i dont think they are very cuddly

Quote:
5)if i actually get a chance to hold her are they safe to hold like will she pinch me or something
probably

Quote:
6)do i need to give her fresh water to drink
i think so. if you ahve a set up where there is enough sand to get on, there shold be a dish (shallow) of fresh water.

Quote:
7)if the water is a little to cold will that hurt her
uh, i dont know. have you tried googling around to see whats acceptable?? i would think that freezing would be too cold... considering they are native here in North Carolina USA

Quote:
please help me
and if u have any other info on how to care for her i would love to hear it
-ashley
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