Date: Wed, 13 May 1998 From: "Joseph S. Panella" sjp@interaccess.com To: "Patrick A. Timlin" ptimlin@yahoo.com Subject: Re: fiddler crabs
PT: Would you be interested in writing up a short (couple paragraphs) essay on your methods so I can post them at my web site?There is a growing opinion that fiddler crabs are bad pets. Some even say that they are almost impossible to keep in the home aquarium. I completly disagree with this. Fiddler crabs do have certain requirements that must be meant, but they are not hard to meet. First the type of fiddler crab most often sold in pets as fresh water crabs lives in brackish water swamps, or mangrove swamps. I kept about seven fiddler's very healthy and active for about 6 months. Unfourtunately they were eaten by 3 mudskippers that I added to the tank. Before this tragedy all of my fiddler's had shedd at least twice and one couple had actually mate ,but were eaten before the eggs could develope. Also all my fiddlers were eating well and acting naturally. They were producing an expected amount of nitrate pellets and were digging burrows.
Keeping them is very easy because fiddler's are naturally strong animals. This is due to the fact that the mangrove swamp is a harsh environment. Also Fiddlers do not require to be fed, they mostly sift through bacteria and detrius in the sand and mud. I kept my fiddlers in a 40 gallon breeder sized tank (bigger than necessary but I was planning to have mudskippers with them) that was filled about 4 inches with brackish water (salinity 1.08 to 1.10), 82 degrees F, and a PH of 8. One half of the tank was a sand bank that was above the water line. The sand bank was built around bog wood and rocks. While not all of these conditions have to be met exactly they do best with these. They do need brackish water and do best at 1.08 to 1.10 but can survive at lower salinities. Also they do need some dry land but do not need half the tank. Also they can tolerate cooler temperatures and lower PH's. But if these conditions are not met the fiddler crabs will not do well and have a shorter life span. For example my cousin had fiddlers in a semi aquatic aquarium for a year without salt and none of his shed at all. Unless you can meet a fish or inverts general requirements it's not worth keeping. Fiddlers are very strong and can SURVIVE in a number of different aquatic situations for a period of time, but cannot live in a totally wrong environment such as a fully aquatic freshwater aquarium at 70 degrees with a PH of 6 for more than a few months. This would be the equivalent as trying to keep a goldfish in a reef tank. [A goldfish] might survive for a few hours because they are hardy. Fiddlers will last longer in fresh water than a gold fish would live in a reef tank but it is not the proper setting. Fiddlers are easy to keep and are very interesting but must be properly taken care of. Also don't just take the guy at the pet store's advice (or mine for that matter) do a little of your own research. If you are interested in keeping Fiddlers in a natural setting or keeping a mangrove aquarium in general feel free to e-mail and I can point you to some sources.
siege
Last modified: December 22, 2001