How to Care for Crayfish Eggs

Crayfish and their cousins the lobsters lay eggs along the underside of their tail and back legs. The female then keeps those eggs with her until they hatch, which takes about 30 days. The young crayfish will leave the security of mom̵7;s tail after about a week. Therefore, caring for crayfish eggs means providing good care for the female and allowing the female to protect her eggs.

Things You'll Need

  • Fish tank
  • Aquarium decor
  • Aquatic plants
  • Fish food
  • Water conditioner
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Instructions

    • 1

      Keep the female in a 20-gallon tank. Do not fill the tank to the brim as the crayfish can climb out. Leave two to three inches at the top of the tank without water to prevent your female from leaving with the eggs.

    • 2

      Keep the tank water temperature at about 70 to 85 degrees and the pH at 6.5 to 8.5. Since crayfish are rather tolerant of these wide ranges in water properties, you probably won̵7;t need to add a heater or chemicals to the water to maintain the proper temperature or pH.

    • 3

      Make the female comfortable by providing places for her to hide and feel safe. You can do this by adding rocks, caves, and plants.

    • 4

      Feed the female an omnivorous diet once a day. Crayfish scavenge off the bottom of the rivers and lakes. You can feed her small pieces of produce, commercially made crayfish food, and fish pellets. If your female is hiding to protect her eggs, she may not eat. Remove all food within one hour to keep the water clean.

    • 5

      Do a partial water change once a week. Remove about 25 percent of the water and replace it with fresh water. Treat the new water with a water conditioner to remove the chlorine first.