Inspiration and questions

[muffin]

Hello to you all, im new here.

I am about to get some crabs soon, but before i do that i need to read up some more on them. and id also like to build a good looking tank for them.

I have a million question in my head atm but i will start out slow and just post questions as i go along that way i will not spam. I have read all the FAQ and all the articals you have here on the forum super good guides. I lift my hat and say thx´s a lot for that.

But first of all i im looking for some insperation for a tank. I have seen that some people build levels to there tanks and they have tubs to do it.

http://www.panzerwelten.de/forum/attachm...p?aid=8440

Id also like to know how to build in a small water fall in to the tank, any tips or tricks?

I will also add that I'm from Sweden.

regards muffin

[Krabbert]

hey muffin. welcome to the forum.
which kind of crabs do you want to keep? this is the most important question when you design the tank. many species have diffrent needs. so do you know what you want or which you can get? hiw big shall the rank be?

greets
marco

[muffin]

hi there ^^


Yes i do know what typ of crab i will get it is one of this tree.
*Mandarin crab
*Batik Crab
*vampire crab

As far as i know this types of crab likes to have more land then water, and that is why id like to do this sort of platform design. that way i can have more water in there and small fish and some shrimps. I have been looking a lot on frog tank designs they have a lot of nice things going there, one important part for me is to have lots of plants and moss in the water and land. I sa some one here on the forum that had order moss seeds, id like to do the same thing.

but i will try for the mandarin, the other two crabs are just a back up plan for me.

regards muffin

[Krabbert]

hi again.
manadrin and batik crabs dont really need a water part...only a small plate with water can be used. the vampires use water part. so thats the point...you should change your idea of tge tank if you want the mandarines. its important to put the plants you buy into a water bath and get rid of the soil ariund the roots so all the chemicals are washed out....do that for a week.

[Ollie Mengedoht]

Hi muffin, welcome to our Panzerwelten!

Indeed You count three species with three very different life styles and habitats, so You should decide which one Your really want or You think about what kind of tank You would like most.

Geosesarma notophorum are land crabs that live in the rain forest. G. sp. "vampire" live in the rain forest too but they do need a water part, they are not as terrestrial as the G. notophorum. Metsasesarma obesum live at the beaches of tropcial islands without freshwater access, but they don't need a water part. You have to spray in their tank for the necessary humidity (as in the others too).

[muffin]

Hi and thank you for the welcome m8,

Well in that case i will be going for the mandarin crabs, and they need a water part. I have a question about them as well i don´t know where i read it. But when you have that type of crab do you have 1 male on 3 females?

I have been looking a lot at poison arrow frog tanks, and i like the design a lot of them have. I gives a better rain forest feeling. And i will try and go for something like that. I any of you know of some sort of guide to build something like that im all for it.

PS: thx a lot for the plant tip i will keep that in mind ones i get to that stage.

[Krabbert]

hey again.

well, i guess thats a misunderstanding. The g. nophorum are the mandarin crabs. here is the sheet os the species. I know its in german, but you can see an idea for a tank. there is only a little water part, as they dont really like water.
maybe you could go for the rainforest idea just without a filtered waterpart, because you would loose too mach space that wouldnt be used by this species.
as the males are more aggressive and territorial, its always good to have more females than men. but i guess you could also go for two couples. would might have soon a lot of baby crabs

[muffin]

hi there Krabbert,

If you gave me a link there i can´t se it, i have been reading up on this page here on the forum.

http://www.panzerwelten.de/forum/thread-1043.html


And i think that i will get more lady crabs just so that there will not be any problems in the tank. I don´t want the animals to get stress´t out and died for some wired reason. I will scrap the ide of getting the water and just go for a more rain forest design then, i have been spending a lot of time looking at the frog tanks they build here in sweden so now i just need to find a good size tank.

The tank im thinking on getting is this one Exo Terra 60x45x45, my plan is to get 1 male crab and 3 female crabs to start. And in time id like the crab to breed in that size of tank i don´t know how many i can have. I don´t want the crabs to live in a to small tank that will just feel wrong for me.

I also have a new question about the Mandarin crab. Is this a good start crab?

[Krabbert]

hey muffin,

sounds like a good plan. the size sounds good. 4 crabs is a good start.
i heared they are good to keep, dont have them myself. they should easy breed, but its possible you wont see them all the time (what is normal for most crabs).

[muffin]

[Krabbert]

hey muffin.
i think the mandarin is "quite" established.
the tank looks awesome, just make sure to have enough spaces to hide for each crab
the moss you can collct in a forest far aside streets...just clean it and put it in.

[muffin]

Hi Krabbert,

"the moss you can collct in a forest far aside streets...just clean it and put it in."

that is a question that i have had for some time now, so it is ok to pick moss out in the forest and put it in to the tank. whit out killing the crab? in that case there will be no problem as i sort of liv in the forest hehe. is there any sort of moss that they like the more? i think we have sort of the same moss here as you do down there in Germany.

And i will be sure to put in some extra spots for the small crabs to hang out in.

I have just found this site, it was super good the only problem is i don´t get a single word in the videos from the German TV.
http://krabbenwelt.de.tl/Home.htm

New question for you Krabbert.

can i take roots from the forest and put in the tank? or do i need to buy the roots they have in a pet store?

[Ollie Mengedoht]

Hiho again

You found the correct species database for yourself, good. But the mandarin crabs don't need a water part. Rain forest terrarium would be good for them, but not nearly as wet as for poison dart frogs please.

More females than males is always better, yes.

The page from Anja and Patrick is quite well, they are friends of us and our forum.

You can take roots from the forest but probably they will mold fast in that humidity. That is the only reason why mangrove roots are better suited for our tanks. But You can try it out, there are some indigenous tree species that do quite well in the wet too.

Oh, most important question: Are they good for beginners? Hm, they are quite easy to keep BUT You almost never see them. G. notophorum lives very secretive and they don't move a lot, so You will know You'll have 'em but You'll see them not often. That's an important point, please don't underestimate that. On the other hand they have a unique breeding care in crabs where the mother crab takes the hatched younglings for some days on their back to moisten them, before they abandon her.

[muffin]

hi BEASTIEPENDENT,

You would think that the cabs like it as wet as the frogs, but i was wrong. my guess is that they like it damp and not to wet then? i will skip the sprinkler system in the tank and just spray the moss from time to time just to keep it growing.

thx a lot for all the help that you all have given me, my next mission now is to go out in the forest and get moss.

//muffin

[muffin]

O i forgot to ask, what sort of soil can i have in the tank? can i buy a bag at my local super market?

[Krabbert]

hey muffin.

noo. get coco-terra-humus, it doesnt molt and has nothing dangerous for your animals in it...the soil from the garden-shop has fertilizer etc in it.

[muffin]

oki doki Krabbert,

will drop by my pet store and get some of that good stuff then.

[Krabbert]

you dont need much of that...like 1-2 bricks. you put water on it and they soak.

[Ollie Mengedoht]

Hi again

…and just spray the moss from time to time just to keep it growing.

That would be better for this species.

[muffin]

hi BEASTIEPENDENT

thx for the answer then i will go out to the forest and collect some moss, to day is a nice and cool day so it will be nice to be out side. I will also be collecting some big roots i got some more inspiration of patric and anja so i will try and do some sort of fusion of them to. I don´t know how it will be in the end but i think this can turn out good. Ones i start building i will start a new post so you can follow me there. And keep this post just for questions and other things.

http://img.webme.com/pic/k/krabbenwelt/w...arium2.jpg

If you have some feedback to give me, and can´t spell well in ENG don´t worry my chrome will help me translate it in to ENG for me so there is no problem from my part to get some German post.

And ones again thx for all the help you guy´s , you have been the best.

[muffin]

sorry for the dubel post, but is there any one here that has read this book?

http://www.bokus.com/bok/9780801450501/w...-sideways/

I have just order it to have something fun to read before bed time.

[Ollie Mengedoht]

Yes, Judith's book is very interesting. She's a crab scientist from the USA and the book is a popular scientific one, so You don't have to be a scientist to understand. Since our Krabben-Fibel isn't yet available in english I can recommend "Walling sideways" for sure.

[muffin]

got the book now and i like it a lot, still not that far in. I also got my crabs to day will post some images on that soon just need to get the images out of the cam. they have a temp home atm will be working on the big tank when i pick it up next week.

[muffin]

Hi,

Here is a images of my 4 new crabs, they like there new home a lot. As i can´t se them a lot they found some good spots to hide under. This is just a temp home for now as im working on a lot bigger tank for them.

any feed back on my back up tank that you can se here? i keep it nice and damp all the time.

[Ollie Mengedoht]

Hi muffin,

seems You got a new Geosesarma sepcies there.

Backup tank seems to be okay – IF You cleansed the plants/moss sufficiently when they were bought. If You collected in a wood far from big industry and farming (!) or something like that. Please read here http://www.panzerwelten.de/forum/thread-1637.html for treating plants before implanting them into a tank.

Oh, and I've overseen a question of yours, if crabs in the hobby are new. Yes, quite. First people in Germany kept some mangrove crabs in the 90s probably, but it really startet in the early 2000s and especially 2006 with the first imported Geosesarma species: tiny, very colorful and reproductive without any experiences with saltwater tanks for the larvae. So yes it is all quite new and there are many many things we all still have to learn.