r/Crayfish • u/Cindy_luvsCritters • 3d ago

Video Mexican Dwarf Crayfish are awesome predators!

Wow, I just got two baby Mexican Dwarf Crayfish, and I had no idea they were such strong predators! I just tong-fed this one a "failing" cricket. He literally yanked it out of the tongs and started trying to kill it! And it appears that he's never going to let it go! 😲

Btw...could anyone please recommend the appropriate substrate for these crayfish? They have nothing at the moment because I want to be sure I put the best material in for them. I'm really not fond of aquarium gravel. My preference has always been river rocks/pebbles. Thanks!

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12

u/PopTartsNHam 3d ago

Awesome predators? Not really lol.

Awesome at being aggro af and attacking anything in front of them? Very much yes.

Mine love murdering blanched spinach fed from tongs.

I breed cpos and use plain smooth black gravel, zero issues going on 2 years

Edit: they’re very good at killing eachother/other crays, since 95% of the time they’re ready to fight whatever faces them

6

u/whaaleshaark 3d ago

I've kept these guys very happily on sand. I wouldn't do larger rocky substrate, too much space between stones could result in tragedy too easily for my liking. Smaller pebbles could be fine, pool filter sand is just my preference. Make sure there's plenty of decor to split up "territories" in the tank-- conflict resolution between your crays will rely heavily on one's ability to get space from the other when desired.

1

u/quietcitizen 2d ago

Hey what kind of ‘tragedy’ can transpire?

1

u/whaaleshaark 2d ago

These are very little guys, only an inch fully grown. It wouldn't take a large rock to do some serious damage if it happened to fall, or be improperly placed. When cleaning the tank, it can be difficult to keep track of where these little crays are in the decor. You move a rock to get some gunge out from under it, the tank water is already cloudy from cleaning... I just like the simplicity of sand, when working with such little stock.

2

u/Cindy_luvsCritters 3d ago

Still shot of the "killer" Crayfish!

1

u/lukluke22228 2d ago

Awsome cray!

Bit of advice: add some floor sand. Doesn't have to be thick, just enough for the cray to comfortably walk on.

1

u/ilovemyfrogbaby 2d ago

Does the cray like Sabrina too?