Celebes Jungle Crabs

[pixl8r]

I am very tempted to try these, after I've got the hang of rearing M. cf scabriculum. My wife thinks I'm strange for my fascination in creepy crawlies. I just think she's weird.

[Guba]

Some more updates and suggestions. Colorado Potato beetle larvae were seen to be eaten and with more variety in live food, or maybe an overabundance of it, no cat food pellets were even touched. I think I'm going to build an enclosure for them. I really don't think they need very much water at all. Definitely it will be a tall tank as they seem to do A LOT of climbing. And real dirt and plants are on the list of decor. Java fern is on the list of plants for sure.

[AnneRiceBowl]

I LOVE the look of those little guys! I will be following this thread. I have just recently acquired my first crab!

[shrimpthing]

Has anyone here bred these before?

Supposedly they will also hunt down small crickets.

[Guba]

To the best of my knowledge, no one in the U.S. has bred them. I haven't had the chance to add crickets yet. But the crabs are QUICK, and pounce on earwigs with ease.

[shrimpthing]

Seems like it shouldn't be too hard based on how the Europeans are doing. I think we haven't had them for long enough to get them to breed.

[Mustafa]

They've been bred here before, just not in huge numbers and not continuously. They are not being bred in large numbers in Europe either. Pretty much all the animals available in Europe (and here) are wild-caught. Part of the problem is that most people have no idea about the natural habitats and diets of these guys. They shouldn't be hard to breed though. I'm working with a similar Geosesarma species right now (about the same size as the purple-clawed Geosesarma sp., bright orange claws, reddish-brown legs). I should be able to report on their breeding activity in a few months once I have more hands-on experience with them (I've already devoured all the available scientific literature I could find since I found out about them more than 2 years ago ).

[Guba]

I welcome ANY tips and pointers on these guys.

(I've already devoured all the available scientific literature I could find since I found out about them more than 2 years ago ).

Is there any way I could access this literature? I'm stone walled at every web site I go to. I'm eager to hear about the species your keeping.

[shrimpthing]

The big problem is we don't know the natural habitat of these guys. I've been told they do not burrow and are a bit arboreal. What?! That is unlike any crab I've ever seen...but then they are weird in plenty of other ways. Supposedly occur around tiny rainforest creeks.

One Geosesarma species has been reported to scavenge dead insects out of Nepenthes pitchers.

[Mustafa]

There are only a few species of Geosesarma that can be found *at times* moderately high on some tree branches. *None* of the species available in the hobby right now are known as "tree-climbing" crabs. There are already lots of myths going around about these crabs, so you have to be careful about where the information actually comes from.

The one thing that can be generalized about Geosesarma species is that they are terrestrial crabs. So, they need to be kept that way. We (as in "humans", scientists..etc.) actually know a lot about their natural habitats. They live on the floors of wet, humid tropical rainforests *close* (as in within a few hundred yards circumference..maybe even further away) to bodies of water but not *inside* the body of water. It's just that most hobbyists don't bother doing the required research and throw these crabs either in an aquarium with "islands" floating on top or create some half-land, half-water living arrangement. That's really all there is to know about them right now. I'll write an article or two once I have actually bred them.

As for access to scientific literature. You need to either have access to a University's resources (i.e. either be a student, faculty/researcher) or have a subscription service that costs a few hundred dollars a year. However, if you take the time and perform some searches on the internet, you can find some freely available literature, too.

[shrimpthing]

Alot of people have noted them retreating to water when disturbed...though that could be an artifact of captive conditions.


I still find it hard to believe they do not burrow. Do they at least modify retreats somewhat?

Here's how my planned enclosure looks. It is about 75% land if not more. False bottom setup.


Earlier in construction so you can see how it was put together. I later added another piece of corkbark, some filter floss, aquatic plant soil, and coir to remove the undercut bank(at the time, was planned for frogs and I was worried of them drowning).

[Mustafa]

That's a great setup! Mostly land is definitely the way to go.

Alot of people have noted them retreating to water when disturbed...though that could be an artifact of captive conditions.

If they happen to be sitting right next to the water they will walk or jump in if majorly disturbed. I believe that's part of their natural behavior. However, most of my crabs aren't sitting right next to the water and retreat under something on land when disturbed. Some crabs will also walk into the water for short periods of time but they don't stay there for hours and hours. They are definitely *not* water crabs.

I still find it hard to believe they do not burrow. Do they at least modify retreats somewhat?

I think it all depends on your setup. More observation is needed to find out why they dig and why not. Mine don't dig around in any visible way (maybe they are under some of the hiding spots) but I know that some people's crabs do, as a matter of fact, burrow. Maybe they burrow if there aren't enough natural hideouts.

[Guba]

Well today is not a good day! I just discovered the male in the water not moving at all. After locating the other two individuals I found a "fourth" crab. The fourth one turned out to be a molt. So now I know what those look like, but the male is gone and so are hopes for breeding!

[Mustafa]

That's really unfortunate. However, the death rate among these imported crabs is just about as bad as with imported shrimp. I've also had 60+ percent of my crabs die and I may not have any females left either. Until there is a reproducing captive population of these guys we just have to deal with such tragedies. This demonstrates how important it is to establish captive breeding populations for all invert species in the hobby.

[shrimpthing]

I only have a pair ATM. Ordered in 3, due to sending mistake delayed for 2 days so female DOA'ed. One of the males died a few days in. Today got replacement female.


Guba: Sorry to hear that! So you've had them for a few months already? Lets hope your females have already mated.

Mustafa: How big is your group? Also, how long in your experience does it take before deaths stop? Wonder if we could set up a breeders registry for these, since they aren't cheap.

From the 2 weeks with mine they do exhibit some burrowing behavior but much prefer to hide in a shelter if possible.