# Other Aquarium Forums > Freshwater Fauna > Invertebrates >  Vampire Crabs Babies

## toysnake

Just sharing photos of some of my little babies of vampire crabs...
the mother just gave birth to some of them

any one else keeping them too?

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## sgbikee80

> Just sharing photos of some of my little babies of vampire crabs...
> the mother just gave birth to some of them
> 
> any one else keeping them too?


that is so cool.
how *you* manage to get them to breed?
i got 1 m*ale* 2 f*emale*, has been trying to get them to breed. any pointer to share?

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## toysnake

i am not expert myself..
I just make sure they have enough space to hide... and i just leave them alone....

then suddenly i saw one of those tiny babies crawling around..  :Smile:

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## sgbikee80

> i am not expert myself..
> I just make sure they have enough space to hide... and i just leave them alone....
> 
> then suddenly i saw one of those tiny babies crawling around..


do *you* change water very often?
what is your water perimeter?
can take a picture of your tank?

hopefully mine work out.

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## Shaihulud

Congrats! I am keeping a pair right now so I hope they breed, I can't even see them most of the time  :Sad:

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## toysnake

i didn't check my water at all...
once a week i will change all the water...
i tends to change the layout of my tank once awhile...
maybe i will try to take some photos.

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## fisherw

I had a pair but both died on me. The female right after a molt. Very interested to know what you are doing right. Can you share info on your setup, what you feed and how often? And other relevant stuff.

Mine was hiding all the time. Didn't seem to eat. Food that I left out got moldy or dried up. Didn't care for crab cuisine. My niece enjoyed terrorizing them though; getting them to move around using a satay stick. Maybe they died of fright.

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## toysnake

I tried to feed agle wafers, but they dun like it...
So i usually feed blood worm.

The mama still giving birth, today just 10 more little babies...

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## dkk08

any updates on the babies?

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## fishy_dude

yea.. would be interesting if can maintain a healthy population.. any one who can manage them kindly share! thx.. :Smile:

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## toysnake

sad to say... none of the babies make it... 
I am still looking for the reason...  :Sad:

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## Shaihulud

I read that the parents will snack on the babies.

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## stormhawk

From an online link, the San Diego Zoo has a colony of these crabs where the young ones are growing up in the same tank with adults. I figure predation occurs when the adults are lacking in food.

Toysnake, maybe too much water? They seem to be more terrestrial, and I think the baby crabs need a particular specialised diet when they are still small perhaps.

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## BEASTIEPENDENT

Hi there,

in a little tank the adults feed on the younglings. Of course it depends on the size of the tank but for example in a 60 cm tank You won't get much baby crabs to the adult age. It is better to separate the minis.  :Wink:

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## toysnake

was thinking maybe its the diet..
I did took out the babies with only the mother.
After half of the babies died, I removed the mother..
But still no use, all the babies died... total of 40 babies  :Crying:

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## stormhawk

BEASTIE,

If you can, share how you and the other German crab hobbyists are raising the baby crabs up to adulthood successfully. It is understandable that in cramped conditions, the parents may predate on the babies. But if there is sufficient food and space, I don't think it should occur.

toysnake,

Next time you have them, maybe try feeding with algae pellets, or some other meaty food like frozen bloodworm. I think when they are small, they are unable to cut up food to eat, so maybe a paste-type food might be good.

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## toysnake

thats the only 2 things i fed my crabs...

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## stormhawk

Then it must be something else. Let's see if beastie will share the experiences of the German hobbyists here. I cannot find anything via Google on raising the baby crabs.

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## BEASTIEPENDENT

Hi there  :Wink: 




> If you can, share how you and the other German crab hobbyists are raising the baby crabs up to adulthood successfully.


Oh, sorry, of course I do – just wasn't here some days.

If we want to raise as much baby crabs as possible we separate them from the keeping tank and put 'em in a plastic box (maybe something like tupperware). That is filled with humus and a dish of water where the little ones should be able to climb in. They are raised here for some months until they reach some millimeters in carapace breadth or maturity.

One can raise the babys in the keeping tank together with the adults but in the cases where we have done this You just get a very little quota of animals that reach adult size. At least in 60 cm tanks. Of course if You would have a 1,50 meter Aqua-Terrarium cannibalism wouldn't be such a problem, but in the "normal" tanks it is.

As much more space You have and as much You feed You may prohibit cannibalism partionally – but only partionally.

For comparison: If raised together with the adults we got some 2 to 5 mini crabs to adult size, if separated in boxes some 20 grown crabs were possible. Loosing something about the half of the complete brood is still normal separated in boxes because of molting problems but this is quite normal, just like in nature.

Hope I could share some of our knowledge  :Wink: 

Ollie/BEASTIE


EDIT: Oh, nutrition, yes. We feed the minis principally the same as the adult ones, but of course for the very young some powderized or flake food is better than an big piece of meat, literally spoken. The powder is best to suspense food to all baby crabs since You can dispense it best. /EDIT

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## stormhawk

Thank you for the information Ollie. Another question though. Is lighting essential for the well-being of the baby crabs? Do they hunt pinheads (baby crickets) ?

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## BEASTIEPENDENT

Hi Stormhawk,

no, lighting is not essential for any crab except Uca (and maybe the other genera out of the superfamily Ocepodoidea). In the contrary they like it if it is darker.

If the baby crabs hunt crickets? Poooh, our Geosesarma sp. "Vampire" don't hunt any crickets but we heard from keepers whose crabs did. You could try it but I would watch it – maybe the crickets could try to eat the mini crabs? Generally they should be herbivore and do not harm the crabs but who knows… That's why I would watch a try.

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## zoothefreak

wow baby vamp crabs too bad they died...  :Sad:  vamp crabs are hard to come by these days I only see rainbow crabs everywhere? where do you guys buy them from usually... the 2 crabs I got from Aquastar both died after 3 months from internal parasites so I aint going back there to buy anymore...

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## dkk08

> wow baby vamp crabs too bad they died...  vamp crabs are hard to come by these days I only see rainbow crabs everywhere? where do you guys buy them from usually... the 2 crabs I got from Aquastar both died after 3 months from internal parasites so I aint going back there to buy anymore...


got my vampires from Y618... last went there on Mon and they sold out on the vampires too sighz sad as I'm looking for another 3 pairs

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## Shaihulud

Managed to breed my vampire crab, and have been seeing baby crabs for 2 weeks  :Smile: . This happened after I seperated the female into a 1 ft tank, that was 3 months or more! I guess she was holding the sperm and only started producing eggs recently. I feed the baby crabs powdered fish food.

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## vivaboy76

shaihulud...do u sell the vampire crabs??

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## Shaihulud

They are still very tiny, so I shifted the female crab to the main tank to reduce predation. I think needs to be larger and to survive before thoughts of selling them. 8 crabs last count, but propably many more hiding, can see tiny moults in the water part.

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## Shaihulud

Heres how small they still are, only snapped that a few minutes ago.

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## fisherw

Shaihulud, still tiny. Can't see anything even with your circles. Interested in 2 pairs (male and female) if you should consider selling some off when ready.

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## vivaboy76

whats the survival rate of adult vampire crab

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## crabby:)

Hi guys i just got a bi-colour vampire crab 3 days ago i feed him ocean free crustanourish but he is always hiding what can i do to get him out,oh and i am gonna gat 1 female for him just to keep him company,my tank doesnt have any filtration but weekly water change is carried out,may i kow any tips on how to care for them oh his tankhas both land and water and is it okay if chase him out from the spot he hides in?

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## BEASTIEPENDENT

Hi crabby,

that is perfectly normal, crabs are flight animals. They nearly always hide and come out in the dusk or night for foraging. If You chase the crabs out of their hiding places it stresses them of course. So You shouldn't do that alle the time.

How big is Your tank? Weekly water change is possible only in quite big water parts.

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## Shaihulud

I seldom see my vampire crabs as well, and there are 4 adults at least in a 1x1 ft tank! The tank is strongly lit however, I use soil for the land substrates, some old aquarium soil, they dig many holes in it. I never changed the water, no filter or pump either. Some of my crabs are 3rd generation already living inside. this time the babies are doing much better than before.

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## crabby:)

Hi thanks for the reply just 1 more question is spraying mist on him stress him as the corner he normally stay at has java moss above the water level so does spraying water at him stress him out?oh and his tank is 19cm in length,11cm in breadth,14cm in height is it too small he looks ok in his current tank :Grin:

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## BEASTIEPENDENT

Hi Crabby, you can spray at him, that's ok. 19 cm length is very small – normally we advise some 30 x 30 cm for a group of 2 to 4 Geosesarma crabs, when the tank has two levels inside. So I would ask You to think if you maybe can get something bigger in the future. For a while it is no problem though, but Geosesarma species are social animals and should be kept in a group. So 1 or 2 females would be the least You should get Your little guy.  :Wink:

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## crabby:)

Hi thanks for the reply but can u share some tips on how to choose a healthy female crab.thanks alot  :Smile:

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## BEASTIEPENDENT

Hi crabby, uh, not really, hard to see. Look that it flees agile and does not sem to be apathic. If it once is on Your hand it may be that it sits there comfortably but else it should try to flee and hide. If it does not try to run away that might be no good sign. If a leg or pincer is missing that doesn't matter usually because it grows back. If You see that it feeds that would be another good sign.

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## crabby:)

hi thanks for the reply

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## crabby:)

Ahhhhh! Help my male vampire crab is not eating what has happen i bought him a female crab today so that they could mate please help i dont want a dead crab

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## Shaihulud

Not to worry, they can not eat for a long time. I advise placing food near his hiding spot in the evening and reducing interaction. remove food if uneaten on next day. Btw my I see baby crabs again, one of my crabs must have just given birth. They really are quite prolific and tough when stabilized. I advise adding some microfauna into the tank such as springtails, woodlice etc. They feed on leftover food and the crabs can eat them.

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## crabby:)

Help!!!!! Please i think my female is sick she is having some wierd milkish white patches on her leg and i saw her spending all her time in the water it is either theres no place for her to hide but i have a flower pot and i even dig a opening under the flower pot for her however i always see the male in there not her is he territorial,and is my female sick,should i seperate her?please reply thanks

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## BEASTIEPENDENT

Crabby, male Geosesarma (and most other crab species) are territorial, yes. If You think the female looks sick, separating it would be a good idea. You can place her in any box free of any toxins or detergents with a little substrate, something to hide under and maybe a small water dish. If the substrate is moist that is normally enough. Although: Milkish white patches does not sound good – can You make a picture of that?

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## crabby:)

How do attach the photo?

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## crabby:)

Ignore the previous post beastiependant please do check ur mail as i have sent the photo of my crab to your email oh i got it from your profile hope u dont mind

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## BEASTIEPENDENT

crabby: Sorry, no mail here (yes, I searched the spam folder carefully too). How to attach an image here You can read here: http://www.aquaticquotient.com/forum...b3_attachments – regarding my mail (it's no secret, so no problem) maybe You mistyped? [email protected]

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## crabby:)

Do check your email again as i have just tried to send it to my 2nd email adress and was sucessful however now using a different method of sending thanks

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## BEASTIEPENDENT

Yes, that mail arrived. To me this does NOT look like anything pathologic. Although this is not the original "Vampire crab" species, that you can find here: http://www.panzerwelten.de/v/Geosesarma/G_sp_Vampir/ . But in the last time Geosesarma bicolor http://www.panzerwelten.de/v/Geosesarma/G_bicolor/ are sold often under the name "Vampire crab", in Germany too. As You can see on the pictures the faint stripes or patches that Your crab has are not unusual. They are even stronger in some specimen we got http://www.panzerwelten.de/v/Geosesarma/G_cf_bicolor/ and called G. cf. bicolor where we are not sure if it really is another species near related to bicolor. Anyway these patches seem not as any sign of illness to me.  :Wink:

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## crabby:)

Thanks for the reply helps me a lot,oh i am upgrading their tank i can sent u the pic if u want to but i am not sure what is kind of set up i was thing a 70percent land and30 percent water but how do i prevent the sand from falling to the water area please check your mail for the phpto of the tank.thanks :Smile:

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## BEASTIEPENDENT

Hi, a 70:30 setup would be a lot better, that's right. If You mean You accumulate sand on one side of the tank that won't work. You have to glue a glas or plexiglas into the tank dividing it into a land zone and a wet zone or You make everything water and set in a kind of dish for a land part or otherwise (in this case You could use the tank as terrarium and put a dish with water in. Although in a small dish with water You have to change the water 100 percent every two or three days maximum. If You have a bigger tank You can filter the water and don't have to change it that often.

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## blaxsol

Hi.

I have been looking everywhere in singapore for Vampire crabs. Anybody knows any shop that is selling it now?

Just got my 2 ft tank setup with dry area, wet area with a mini waterfall but with no vampire crabs in it.  :Sad:

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## fisherw

Bought a few yesterday (Thursday) at Tropical Fish International at Pasir Ris Industrial Park 1. Check address on the AQ LFS listing.

Quite a lot available and a mix of males and females (at least I was able to spot and bought a few females) unlike most times when only males are available. Also cheaper than at most places. Also other species there. Go for it.

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## blaxsol

The setup with 4 vampire crabs and 4 orange coconut crabs

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## Dscheng

Sorry to dig out this thread. Just brought vampire crab. Some tips to take care of them? I feed them with Sera food pellet, should be ok right?

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## Urban Aquaria

> Sorry to dig out this thread. Just brought vampire crab. Some tips to take care of them? I feed them with Sera food pellet, should be ok right?


Thats good-quality premium food you are feeding the crab... my nephew just feeds his crabs scraps of bread and leftover vegetables, and they are still alive and grew larger after a year.  :Grin:

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## Dscheng

Found one dead this morning. Not sure what happen too.

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## lucasjiang

Maybe you can post some pictures of your setup? It will be easier for us to help you.

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## almondleaf

I hv 2 pairs of vampire crab. One of female was pregnant for weeks. Yesterday she was restless, kept climbing up the small waterfall filter and comes/drop down. Eventually this morning, i saw the eggs were dislodged. And the ants came into the tank (eating?/taking) for the eggs? Guess the eggs are all no good/dead. Any idea how i can improve the situation should the lady is pregnant again?

Sent from my CPH1701 using Tapatalk

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## rainbatt

Can they survive in tap water?

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## bazz

> Can they survive in tap water?


You need a water conditioner that removes Chlorine, and Chlormine. I use Seachem Prime. They need 80% land, and 20% water with soil or sand for the land but rocks work as well but I recommend a mix. Moss etc help as well. 

Water needs a filter, else change the water few days.

They need calcium, so I feed them a varied diet but ensure they do have the Hikari Crab cuisine to ensure there is sufficient calcium. 

Sent from my SM-N975F using Tapatalk

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