Monday, 13. July 2009, 22:46
Text: Monika Rademacher
Photos: Oliver Mengedoht
Translation: Ulli Bauer
Scientific name: Neosarmatium meinerti
Trivial name: Spider Crab
[attachment=8469]
Systematics: Domain: Eucaryota, kingdom: Animalia, subkingdom: Metazoa (multiple-celled animals), Eumetazoa (true tissue), grade: Bilateria, branch: Protostomia, infrakingdom: Ecdysozoa (molting animals), phylum: Arthropoda (jointed-leg invertebrates), subphylum: Crustacea, class: Malacostraca (higher crustaceans), superorder: Eucarida, order: Decapoda (ten-legged crayfish), suborder: Pleocyemata, infraorder: Reptantia, section: Brachyura (true crabs), superfamily: Grapsoidea, family: Sesarmidae (mangrove crabs), genus: Neosarmatium, species: Neosarmatium meinerti
[attachment=8470]
Origin/Distribution: Southern and Eastern Africa, Australia, South-East Asia
[attachment=8471]
More pix: http://www.panzerwelten.de/v/Neosarmatium/N_meinerti/
Description: Carpace brownish to almost black, joint membranes are blueish, some limb segments have reddish rims. The first two cheliped segments are also dark brown to black with red rims, the finger segment's onset is of the same color as on the segment before, towards the fingers it is of an intensive red, fading into white. The fingers themselves are both white to light beige. However, there is a color morph whose entire finger segment is of a uniform (dirty) yellow. The eyes are of a light color, almost white, with faint reddish to light brown hues along the outer edge and have a central dark spot.
[attachment=8472]
The surface of the carapace is strewn with numerous smaller and larger tubercles and spines.
[attachment=8473]
Sex differences: Typical for crabs, the males have a narrow, pointed apron and bulkier claws, the females have a wider, more roundish apron nearly covering the entire abdomen.
Size: 4 to 6 cm carapace width
Life span: approx. 5 years
Water temperature: tropical (around 20 to 28 °C, more active from 24 °C upwards)
[attachment=8474]
Tank size/stock: Group of three (1.2) in a well-structured aquaterrarium, from 112 l upwards (80x35x40cm) – it is highly recommended to keep them in a small group of at least three. In the habitat, there are 5 to 22 of these crabs to one square meter, the average is around 11 animals per sqm. Of course, when kept in captivity the group size should not be orientated on the maximum density, this mainly works in the habitat because the animals' burrows reach down to a depth of up to 2 meters - thus they compensate for what they lack regarding territorial space on the surface.
In general, a group should consist of more females than males, and you should absolutely make sure that you don't put more males than one in larger groups if you can't provide them with enough room for staking out their territories.
Tank set-up: Aquaterrarium (aquarium with a land part) and wood, rocks, sturdy plants; well-structured with hideaways (wood, rocks), fallen tree leaves (as hideaway and staple food). In the water: sand or gravel, on the land parts, sand, soil, a mixture of both or terrarium humus, which is best suited according to our experience as it hardly moulds. You can also keep them in a brackish aquaterrarium, this is not required, though. Neosaramtium meinerti do very well in freshwater and are often found close to freshwater in the habitat.
[attachment=8475]
Food: Typical for crabs, they are omnivores.
• Leaves (the main staple of many crabs in nature; mostly oak and beech are fed, however, all European broadleaved tree leaves are possible, also Indian almond leaves), muck, water plants
• Vegetables/fruit: nearly all vegetables and fruit are suitable (peas, lettuce, cucumber, apple, zucchini, pear, banana, grapes, tomato, Brussels sprouts, bell peppers) except for parsley and beans or other kinds that contain Prussic acid or copper; carrots (boiled); potato and rice (boiled) or noodles (uncooked? Don't leave these in the tank for too long a time though, they can be the cause of turbid water and finally lead to a bacteria bloom and oxygen depletion); no citrus fruit due to their high acid content
• Dry food: Catfish tabs, fish (flake) food, food pellets, rabbit, guinea pig and chinchilla food pellets (without copper!), Spirulina tabs, crayfish tabs, Gammarus
• Frozen food: Black, glass and blood worms, Cyclops, brine shrimp, clam meat
• Live food: Earthworms (it's best to cut them into pieces though, or else these worms might burrow in the substrate, possibly also under water, die and rot there unnoticed until it's too late)
• Meat (rarely): Chicken bones with meat rests (rinsed well to prevent too much fat from getting into the terrarium)
• Fish: deep-frozen smelts et.al., tuna fish, sardines, herring etc. fresh or from a can (in their own juice, not in oil)
• Calcium: cuttlebone, smashed eggshells or powdered calcium in self-made food sticks
[attachment=8476]
Behavior: Keeping them as adequate as possible requires them to be able to live in a (small) group. The crabs display a decidedly social behavior.
In general, there should always be more hideaways than crabs on the land as well as in the water parts. These hideaways shouldn't only provide a physical hideaway but also serve as visual borders.
N. meinerti are not shy and surprise the observer by a rather forceful behavior. In contrast to many other crab species they do not avoid things unknown to them but walk towards them purposefully. They easily get used to the keeper's having to work inside their tank, and quite often they'd like to take part in that. Cleaning the glass can be quite funny in a Neosarmatium meinerti tank - at least our crabs display a keen interest in the pane cleaner and try to catch it. These crabs also seem to find other stuff useful, this crab for instance has fallen in love with a sucker, which it even dragged into its burrow.
[attachment=8477]
N. meinerti get used to their keeper so much that they can be hand-fed after a short time. One of our crabs has become accustomed to this way of feeding so that it seems to be of the opinion that a hand in the tank automatically means food; whenever I work in the tank, it tries to reach one of my fingers even if it has to perform the most acrobatic maneuvers. It also clings to the feeding tweezers very enthusiastically and doesn't let go even if the food has fallen out long before.
A lively crab species very suitable for observation. The animals are about as often in the water as on land and thus need a tank that provides them with large land parts as well as a suitably ample water zone.
[attachment=8478]
Reproduction: They belong to the unspecialized reproductive type; the females carry a clutch, consisting of thousands of eggs, in their apron and then release their larvae into brackish or marine water. There the larvae go through several zoea and megalopa stages before they leave the water as young crabs.
Socialization: Shrimp, snails (smaller specimens might be eaten), guppies (individual specimens might be caught and eaten), they should not be socialized with crayfish, regardless of their species.
Our crabs have been living in a 1 meter tank together with two other crab species. The land parts there are on the second level. There are five crabs in total in this community aquaterrarium (one Chiromantes dehaani and two Sesarmops intermedium), and even though the meinerti are the smallest they prove daily that they are also the most assertive in this group, and they assure their position towards their companions consistently. However, there haven't been any serious quarrels up to now. Smaller confrontations can be observed during which manifold threatening postures are displayed, but so far none of the inhabitants have been hurt or suppressed.
[attachment=8479]
Additional information:
• Neosarmatium meinerti are an important factor in their habitats, as they for once use fallen leaves and on the other hand continuously work the ground in their biotopes due to their burrowing activities. Scientific observation has shown that these crabs are able to eat the double amount of leaves than the trees can produce. They are also known to often bury leaves in order to build up food depots.
Their living habits are also very interesting. They only make burrows and caves of their own from a certain age on. Juveniles live in tunnels starting inside the burrows of larger crabs.
• They will eat practically anything they deem edible, and eat it all. This means that they also will feed on practically all the plants in the water and on land. Thus you won't be able to have any long-term greenery in your aquaterrarium.
[attachment=8480]
Staple food for the trip
• They are active hunters and thus also prey on fish from time to time. However, according to our observance, they do not attack the plecos living in our tank. Guppies and rice fish are caught and eaten from time to time.
[attachment=8481]
Camouflage is good
Photos: Oliver Mengedoht
Translation: Ulli Bauer
Scientific name: Neosarmatium meinerti
Trivial name: Spider Crab
[attachment=8469]
Systematics: Domain: Eucaryota, kingdom: Animalia, subkingdom: Metazoa (multiple-celled animals), Eumetazoa (true tissue), grade: Bilateria, branch: Protostomia, infrakingdom: Ecdysozoa (molting animals), phylum: Arthropoda (jointed-leg invertebrates), subphylum: Crustacea, class: Malacostraca (higher crustaceans), superorder: Eucarida, order: Decapoda (ten-legged crayfish), suborder: Pleocyemata, infraorder: Reptantia, section: Brachyura (true crabs), superfamily: Grapsoidea, family: Sesarmidae (mangrove crabs), genus: Neosarmatium, species: Neosarmatium meinerti
[attachment=8470]
Origin/Distribution: Southern and Eastern Africa, Australia, South-East Asia
[attachment=8471]
More pix: http://www.panzerwelten.de/v/Neosarmatium/N_meinerti/
Description: Carpace brownish to almost black, joint membranes are blueish, some limb segments have reddish rims. The first two cheliped segments are also dark brown to black with red rims, the finger segment's onset is of the same color as on the segment before, towards the fingers it is of an intensive red, fading into white. The fingers themselves are both white to light beige. However, there is a color morph whose entire finger segment is of a uniform (dirty) yellow. The eyes are of a light color, almost white, with faint reddish to light brown hues along the outer edge and have a central dark spot.
[attachment=8472]
The surface of the carapace is strewn with numerous smaller and larger tubercles and spines.
[attachment=8473]
Sex differences: Typical for crabs, the males have a narrow, pointed apron and bulkier claws, the females have a wider, more roundish apron nearly covering the entire abdomen.
Size: 4 to 6 cm carapace width
Life span: approx. 5 years
Water temperature: tropical (around 20 to 28 °C, more active from 24 °C upwards)
[attachment=8474]
Tank size/stock: Group of three (1.2) in a well-structured aquaterrarium, from 112 l upwards (80x35x40cm) – it is highly recommended to keep them in a small group of at least three. In the habitat, there are 5 to 22 of these crabs to one square meter, the average is around 11 animals per sqm. Of course, when kept in captivity the group size should not be orientated on the maximum density, this mainly works in the habitat because the animals' burrows reach down to a depth of up to 2 meters - thus they compensate for what they lack regarding territorial space on the surface.
In general, a group should consist of more females than males, and you should absolutely make sure that you don't put more males than one in larger groups if you can't provide them with enough room for staking out their territories.
Tank set-up: Aquaterrarium (aquarium with a land part) and wood, rocks, sturdy plants; well-structured with hideaways (wood, rocks), fallen tree leaves (as hideaway and staple food). In the water: sand or gravel, on the land parts, sand, soil, a mixture of both or terrarium humus, which is best suited according to our experience as it hardly moulds. You can also keep them in a brackish aquaterrarium, this is not required, though. Neosaramtium meinerti do very well in freshwater and are often found close to freshwater in the habitat.
[attachment=8475]
Food: Typical for crabs, they are omnivores.
• Leaves (the main staple of many crabs in nature; mostly oak and beech are fed, however, all European broadleaved tree leaves are possible, also Indian almond leaves), muck, water plants
• Vegetables/fruit: nearly all vegetables and fruit are suitable (peas, lettuce, cucumber, apple, zucchini, pear, banana, grapes, tomato, Brussels sprouts, bell peppers) except for parsley and beans or other kinds that contain Prussic acid or copper; carrots (boiled); potato and rice (boiled) or noodles (uncooked? Don't leave these in the tank for too long a time though, they can be the cause of turbid water and finally lead to a bacteria bloom and oxygen depletion); no citrus fruit due to their high acid content
• Dry food: Catfish tabs, fish (flake) food, food pellets, rabbit, guinea pig and chinchilla food pellets (without copper!), Spirulina tabs, crayfish tabs, Gammarus
• Frozen food: Black, glass and blood worms, Cyclops, brine shrimp, clam meat
• Live food: Earthworms (it's best to cut them into pieces though, or else these worms might burrow in the substrate, possibly also under water, die and rot there unnoticed until it's too late)
• Meat (rarely): Chicken bones with meat rests (rinsed well to prevent too much fat from getting into the terrarium)
• Fish: deep-frozen smelts et.al., tuna fish, sardines, herring etc. fresh or from a can (in their own juice, not in oil)
• Calcium: cuttlebone, smashed eggshells or powdered calcium in self-made food sticks
[attachment=8476]
Behavior: Keeping them as adequate as possible requires them to be able to live in a (small) group. The crabs display a decidedly social behavior.
In general, there should always be more hideaways than crabs on the land as well as in the water parts. These hideaways shouldn't only provide a physical hideaway but also serve as visual borders.
N. meinerti are not shy and surprise the observer by a rather forceful behavior. In contrast to many other crab species they do not avoid things unknown to them but walk towards them purposefully. They easily get used to the keeper's having to work inside their tank, and quite often they'd like to take part in that. Cleaning the glass can be quite funny in a Neosarmatium meinerti tank - at least our crabs display a keen interest in the pane cleaner and try to catch it. These crabs also seem to find other stuff useful, this crab for instance has fallen in love with a sucker, which it even dragged into its burrow.
[attachment=8477]
N. meinerti get used to their keeper so much that they can be hand-fed after a short time. One of our crabs has become accustomed to this way of feeding so that it seems to be of the opinion that a hand in the tank automatically means food; whenever I work in the tank, it tries to reach one of my fingers even if it has to perform the most acrobatic maneuvers. It also clings to the feeding tweezers very enthusiastically and doesn't let go even if the food has fallen out long before.
A lively crab species very suitable for observation. The animals are about as often in the water as on land and thus need a tank that provides them with large land parts as well as a suitably ample water zone.
[attachment=8478]
Reproduction: They belong to the unspecialized reproductive type; the females carry a clutch, consisting of thousands of eggs, in their apron and then release their larvae into brackish or marine water. There the larvae go through several zoea and megalopa stages before they leave the water as young crabs.
Socialization: Shrimp, snails (smaller specimens might be eaten), guppies (individual specimens might be caught and eaten), they should not be socialized with crayfish, regardless of their species.
Our crabs have been living in a 1 meter tank together with two other crab species. The land parts there are on the second level. There are five crabs in total in this community aquaterrarium (one Chiromantes dehaani and two Sesarmops intermedium), and even though the meinerti are the smallest they prove daily that they are also the most assertive in this group, and they assure their position towards their companions consistently. However, there haven't been any serious quarrels up to now. Smaller confrontations can be observed during which manifold threatening postures are displayed, but so far none of the inhabitants have been hurt or suppressed.
[attachment=8479]
Additional information:
• Neosarmatium meinerti are an important factor in their habitats, as they for once use fallen leaves and on the other hand continuously work the ground in their biotopes due to their burrowing activities. Scientific observation has shown that these crabs are able to eat the double amount of leaves than the trees can produce. They are also known to often bury leaves in order to build up food depots.
Their living habits are also very interesting. They only make burrows and caves of their own from a certain age on. Juveniles live in tunnels starting inside the burrows of larger crabs.
• They will eat practically anything they deem edible, and eat it all. This means that they also will feed on practically all the plants in the water and on land. Thus you won't be able to have any long-term greenery in your aquaterrarium.
[attachment=8480]
Staple food for the trip
• They are active hunters and thus also prey on fish from time to time. However, according to our observance, they do not attack the plecos living in our tank. Guppies and rice fish are caught and eaten from time to time.
[attachment=8481]
Camouflage is good