Feeding Crayfish
Crayfish are preferably detrivores (eat decaying plant/vegetable matter) though are still opportunistic omnivores, which means that given the opportunity the crayfish will eat just about anything given to it, healthy or otherwise. Because of this feeding behavior it is important that you, the provider for the crayfish, supply the right types of food for your little guys health and happiness.
They are also considered Benthic feeders, meaning they eat and dwell on the bottom of the tank. This means that you will, no doubt, have to be sure your crayfish mate can reach the feed you are giving it. A sinking feed is always helpful.
How much to Feed?
This will vary from tank to tank. The most important thing to keep in mind is preventing your water from getting "ugly" as it will do more damage to your crayfish than not feeding it. Crayfish can and will go for weeks without eating, especially if the water temp is at the lower end of their scale. So keep an eye on the food if it is left over. Quite often I will not feed a tank for a week to let it be cleaned up by the crayfish.
In general crayfish will eat roughly 1% of their body weight every two days or 0.5% every day. If you know how much your crayfish weighs then you can work out how much to feed it. That gets a bit technical really, but useful if you are into that type of math. Feeding for each crayfish in the tank, one pellet, or piece of feed the size of a pea every second day will keep them happy.
Will my Crayfish Mate eat my other wetpets?
Undoubtedly, your crayfish will eat what ever it can find. Many members here keep community tanks with no fatalities and others with somewhat less than desirable results. One of the keys to preventing your crayfish from munching on your other mates, is to keep it well fed. As with any omnivores, they will eat anything if they are hungry enough. Wouldn't you?
Your Crayfish will Eat Plants!
They will definitely uproot and mostly destroy any plants that you have in the tank. To prevent this from happening, it is best to have the crayfish in the tank and settled before introducing plants. Personally, I have fully planted tanks with many different species and aside from a little "clipping" now and then, the plants are left where they are. If a crayfish is introduced to a fully planted aquarium, they will rummage around and move all your substrate until they have it just how they want it.
Feeding Veggies that Float
If you are feeding vegetables, which are great, the downside is they tend to float. In this case you can use a plastic clothes peg from the clothes line and attach a small suction cup to it. Clip your fresh veggies to it and stick it on the side of the tank near the bottom. Or simply stuff the veggies in a very small, clean glass jar (baby food) and drop it in the tank without a lid. Great for going away for a week or so.
When feeding veggies be sure to wash them properly to prevent poisoning your crayfish with any "anti life" residue left on them. Always good just o give them a quick 3 minute soak in boiled water before putting them in the tank. Hard veggies like carrot, potatoe and pumpkin tend to grow fungus in the tank before the crayfish will touch it, by then it will be floating and "hairy", so the blanching helps soften them up for chewing.
What not to Feed your Crayfish Mate
Quite often we hear great stories of crayfish munching on hotdogs and chilli beans. As interesting and amusing as these stories are, it is best to steer away from processed foods. Any whole shrimp based feeds are not advisable as they can still carry WSSV (White Spot Syndrome Virus)
Below are some feeds used by the members here on Crayfishmates.com
Commercial Fish/Crustacean and other Feeds
Feeds from your local fish shop generally do the job and most commonly used. You may need to add the odd veggie once a week to be sure good vitamins are available (especially A).
algae tabs
fish food flakes
krill
grounded dry fish food
rabbit pellets (most pellets like chicken work well)
Shrimp pellets
tropical fish flake
ssinking fish food
HBH Crab & Lobster Bites
sinking cichlid pellets
algae wafers
Fresh and Frozen Fruits
All fruits are great, though it is important to keep an eye on the amount of acidic fruits, such as oranges or anything citrus as these will lower the pH. of your water and we all know what happens with sudden drops.
apple
Banana
orange
red apples
fresh strawberries
green grapes
Fresh and Frozen Vegetables/plants
Fresh veggies and plant are the best of any feed and rarely causes water issues from overfeeding. When you are planing to have plants in your aquarium, the crayfish are planing on you not having any. Only small pieces are needed and often a veggie clip (DIY forum) to hold them down.
cucumber
frozen pea
garlic
organic zuchini (spoiled crayfish, any zuchini/squash will do)
spinach
spirulina
Plants
duckweed
certain algae
string bean (any green beans are great)
frozen carrots
frozen peas
frozen sweetcorn
moss ball
Fish and other Animal Meats
Meats like steak and processed meat are best not used and of so in very small amounts because they will cause water quality issues quite quickly. Any seafood, very fresh is possibly the second best feed to use but again in small amounts.
fat juicy wax worms (black, blood, earth or any - just watch the fat content)
lean ham (limit the use of processed meats)
live earthworms
mussel
frozen blood worm
prawn
snails
some fish (any fresh fish at all)
squid
egg shells
fresh chicken
leftover turkey
steak
Mealworms (Tenebrio molitor larvae)
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