Escape!

[Dark Virtue]

Hi all,

Bought 2 red clawed crabs for our 30 gallon aquarium, one male, one female. Male escaped after a week...found him in the filter. Few days later, gone for good this time.

Bought another male and a week later found HIM in the filter.

Not sure how I can crab proof my tank so they can't get out. My guess is they're climbing up the intake tube and getting out that way.

The female has never been a problem...guess she's not too interested in exploration, although she's all over the tank. She even claimed the small, floating log we have in the tank for a while.

Any ideas here?

Thanks!

[HeatherH]

I had a crab many years ago that was also an escape artist. We found him behind the fridge one morning. :hmm3grin2orange:

It's not very attractive,but I bought one of those wire screen covers and cut holes to perfectly cover and go around everything poking up past the top of the tank. It worked pretty good but it was ugly.

[Dark Virtue]

I may have to go that route...just found him in the filter again!

[annageckos]

Is the tank full of water or do the crabs have a land area. Red claw crabs are NOT fully aquatic. They need about half land half water. They are also brackish and need salt(reef or marine not aquarium salt) added to the water or it will shorten thier lifespan and weaken thier ammune system.

[Dark Virtue]

Is the tank full of water or do the crabs have a land area. Red claw crabs are NOT fully aquatic. They need about half land half water. They are also brackish and need salt(reef or marine not aquarium salt) added to the water or it will shorten thier lifespan and weaken thier ammune system.

I do use aquarium salt, so I don't think that's a problem.

The water's about 2 inches from the top.

I have a floating log that the female used to occupy, so they definitely have a land area. That doesn't seem to stop the males from trying to get out :)

[annageckos]

Not aquarium salt, it does not have the same makeup as marine salt. Aquarium salt is just salt, but marine salt have a lot of other things in it that brackish and saltwater animals need. Do you have fish in this tank? If so are they brackish? I think part of the reason your crab is trying to exscape is because the setup is not right for them. They are more terrestial and need about half the tank to be land with a few inches of water. They can survive for some time in full aquatic, freshwater setups, but it will kill them. By adding aquarium salt you are not making a brackish water tank. And salt is not good for freshwater fish. Really, the best thing to do for the crabs is to get a ten gallon tank and set it up to meet thier needs. It is not hard, and you will be rewarded with happy, thriving crabs.