Featured Fish Friday: Freshwater Lobsters! These “Lobsters” (Procambarus clarkii) are actually a species of tropical freshwater crayfish native to the Southeastern United States that has been specially bred to achieve their unique coloration. While these invertebrates are extremely easy to care for, there are a few things to consider if you wish to keep one. These lobsters are semi-aggressive, with the habit of eating anything they can get their claws on- your other small fish, inverts, and live plants are usually NOT safe around these guys. Due to this ease of feeding, the lobsters will take any food offered to them- sinking pellets, frozen/thawed/freeze-dried brine shrimp, mysis shrimp, blood worms, krill, algae wafers, their lobster bretheren, newt pellets, turtle pellets, cat food… the list goes on. A suitable tank size for a single lobster starts at 20 gallons for a full-grown lobster, but a larger tank such as a 55 gallon would be much more comfortable and easy to maintain. A temperature range of 72-78 F (22- 26 C) is recommended. The lobsters appreciate having a cave or other such hiding-spot in which they can create a burrow. It is fun to watch these creatures excavate a hiding spot to suit their liking. On average, the lobsters reach a length of 6 inches (15.2 cm), and come in a variety of colors, including (but not limited to), blue, red, white, tangerine, purple, and an assorted mix of all these aforementioned colors.
Posted on: Fri, 19 Dec 2014 06:21:22 +0000
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