keeping some crabs from Puget Sound alive?

[Handegard]

My sister just called, her friend brought back some shells from Whidby Island, and didn't know some had crabs in them. She'd like to try and save them.

I have some salt, but all I can find out is that the sound ranges from 20-27 0/00. I have no idea what that means. Can anyone tell me the specific gravit of the sound?

Anyone know about keeping these critters? I assume cold is better, so no heater or anything. Was planing to loan her a 20g tank and some salt. I'll toss a powerhead in there, and some rocks.


Anyone done this? I'm hoping she'll take them back, but not for at least a week.

Thanks,
Chris

 

[tat2z_21]

Well to be honest with you when I forst started I had a few of the rock crabs and some of the local hermits in my reef tank. They lived until I took them out (sorry little guys) but they adapted to the warmer water and the specifig gravity I had in my tank just fine. However they like to eat anything they come across.

 

[Handegard]

Yeah, but there is no tank to put them in to start with. They aren't in any water to acclimate. I'm pretty much going to have to toss them in, so I want to get it as right as possible...

 

[returnofsid]

I'd recommend putting them back in the Sound

 

[Handegard]

Thats the goal. She won't have the oportunity to do so untill next weekend.

As best I could find the sound is slightly less salty than the rest of the ocean, so I gave her some of my water from my reef and added a little fresh to make it about 1.019-1.020 and loaned her a 5 gallon tank with some gravel and a sponge in it. The crabs burrowed into the gravel, and then came back out to eat when I tossed a little food in (new life spectrum) and I'm pretty satisfied that they'll survive a week.

 

[chend2]

Haha cute, keep it in teh garage. The sound is about 48 degrees right now.

 

[Herefishyfishy]

Thats the goal. She won't have the oportunity to do so untill next weekend.

As best I could find the sound is slightly less salty than the rest of the ocean, so I gave her some of my water from my reef and added a little fresh to make it about 1.019-1.020 and loaned her a 5 gallon tank with some gravel and a sponge in it. The crabs burrowed into the gravel, and then came back out to eat when I tossed a little food in (new life spectrum) and I'm pretty satisfied that they'll survive a week.

The sound is almost the same as the ocean. Make up some salt water and keep it in a bucket in the garage where it can stay about 50 degrees. An air stone helps a lot if available. Water motion isn't as big a deal, but need to ensure it stays fresh with water changes untill can dump them back in the sound.

 

[dnjan]

Thats the goal. She won't have the oportunity to do so untill next weekend.

As best I could find the sound is slightly less salty than the rest of the ocean, so I gave her some of my water from my reef and added a little fresh to make it about 1.019-1.020 and loaned her a 5 gallon tank with some gravel and a sponge in it. The crabs burrowed into the gravel, and then came back out to eat when I tossed a little food in (new life spectrum) and I'm pretty satisfied that they'll survive a week.

If the water you gave her is from your tank, and not from a supply of saltwater kept for water changes, I would recommend that the crabs not be returned to the Puget Sound. Since you don't know the the water from your tank contains absolutely nothing pathogenic to any of the lifeforms in the Sound, the risk of contamination, no matter how slight, is not worth taking.

 

[warforged]

I'd recommend putting them back in the Sound

I would do what he says for multiple reasons.
Not that it matters to me , but isn't there some laws against us taking things from local wild life and placing them in our homes?

I recall being warned about this years ago when I caught a catfish from a local pond and put him in my fresh water tank...

 

[burning2nd]

save the little bugger's

what was the water temp they came from?
the salt should have bin the the .020's right?

 

[ac7av]

There has been quit a bit of discussion about putting live animals from the Puget Sound into our tanks to keep as pets and many have said it is illegal. I contacted the Washington State department of fish and wildlife and what they said is it is not illegal to harvest and to have them live at home in an aquarium as long as you are following the regulations and those can be downloaded from there website. There may be a legal issue that I am looking into about transporting live marine animals on Washington state roads. When I receive a call back from the transportation department I will post the information.

On this issue of the small crabs that are called shore crabs, they are listed under the unclassified marine invertebrates and does not require a license and no minimum size. They can not be harvested from state parks and there is a ten daily limit.

IMO like the others have said, don’t put them back just keep them. You don’t want to contaminate the sound with anything you may have in your tank.

 

[burning2nd]

its only a matter of time b4 someone had to take it to the next level...

people brake the law day in and day out.. speeding, tossing your C'I's out the window, talking on the cell while driveing,

MO: is that you should consiter it as life, and death, not right and wrong,

kindda off the tail but very close,
yesterday me and the wife, are yelling at each other, cause im at work panicing (sticky heater)
so i ask her to check it and stay on it check it check it check,
she says "its not life, or death"

so then im talking to paul at work (other paul) and he said very simply
"ya its not your life, or death, its the MAjors life or death... its his world that dies"

it works both ways, about contamination, more then likely the sound is gonna contaminate your tank, but theres a chance, that maybe you could do damage, to the sound


i would setup something for the crabs ASAP and keep them alive, and molting,

whats up with the picture? is he a mean crab or happy crab?

 

[Paul B]

I have been keeping crabs snails, clams shrimp from the Sound for almost 40 years. They aclimate just fine in regular strength seawater in my reef but I keep them in an unheated smaller tank. Feed them pellets, any kind of pellets.
After they get too large I put them back in the Sound where I collected them.
No you won't polute the ocean with your crabs and the crab police will not arrest you. They will only do that if you take food crabs or lobsters.
I used to have an urchin collection business and I tried to get a permit to collect them, but the Dept of Envirnmental conservation where I get my lobster permit from diden't even know what an urchin was. They said if they don't know what it is, it's legal to take.
I have this guy now.