Looking after Your Marron

Introducing Marron: Marron are usually delivered in boxes with cooling packs and foam moisture pads to stop them drying out. Acclimatise the Marron by removing the cooling blocks for 5 - 10 minutes before introducing them to your tank. Leave the foam pads in place so the Marron don’t dry out. Feeding Marron: Crayfish are principally vegetarian and will survive well on a diet of waterweed and almost any thinly cut vegetables such as pumpkin, potato, celery (including leaves), and apples and other fruits. You can also give them small amounts of meat or fish but it is not necessary. The important point to remember is not to overfeed crayfish. Crayfish only have a small stomach and will stop eating when full, leaving the remainder of the food. They do not need to be fed every day. A good feeding schedule would be one to two small pieces of food every two to three days. Remember to remove any left-over food after two hours. To prevent algae blooms and other problems in your tank, it is often recommended by some growers that you feed them specialised Marron pellets usually available from your Marron supplier or from shops such as The Pond Shop in Midvale WA. Introducing Other Species into your Aquarium: Marron will live quite happily with other species in an aquarium if they are given enough space and habitat to be comfortable with. If you’re worried about Marron eating your new addition, you can temporarily tape or band their claws to prevent damage. Marron do not need their claws to feed so this will give time for your aquarium inhabitants to get to know each other.

More Information

The Aquaculture Council of WA also provide a short PDF: Keeping Marron in a Backyard or an Indoor Aquarium on their website Woodvale Fish & Lily Farm have a number of videos on their website giving advice on keeping Marron and Yabbies at home as well as an extensive range of videos on Aquaponics and pond maintenance.. Burkes Backyard have a section on their website covering Yabbies and Marron as pets The Pond Shop in Midvale WA sell Marron Pellets by the griplock bag from 600g to 1.7Kg

Marron make a great addition to an aquarium adding interest & colour (especially blue Marron). They are fairly active which adds lots of interest but don’t burrow so they will not upset the design or formation of your aquarium . Marron are hardy creatures however to keep them healthy there are a number of things you need to do to keep their environment suitable for them to grow in. You will need to ensure that you: • Don’t use scheme town water (which contains high levels of chlorine) in your tank, use rainwater if available else you’ll need to aerate the water for 48 hours prior to adding it to the tank. • Keep the water PH balanced around neutral PH of 7 - 8 • Maintain the temperature constant above 12 degrees Celsius. Optimum growth occurs at around 24 degrees. Once temperatures get to 28 degrees and above deaths can occur. • Have some structure to your aquarium where Marron can hide. Marron are territorial so this will help them feel at home. • Make it difficult for your Marron to escape because given a chance, they will! • Keep the water clean by changing it regularly (every two to three months) and use the recommended water conditioners each time the water is changed. • Do not allow uneaten food to stay in the aquarium for more than a couple of hours, as it will quickly turn the water bad. • Use a good quality aerator and filter. Good aeration is vital to sustaining your crayfish. Under-gravel filters, however, are not recommended for crayfish because their burrowing usually uncovers the filter and reduces its efficiency. • Do not over-stock your tank because crayfish are very territorial and will kill or damage each other if placed in too small a tank. Each animal requires about 30-40 cm area with places to hide from the other crayfish.

Moulting:

Crayfish like all arthropods shed or moult their outer skin in order to grow. This happens every three to four weeks in small crayfish (4-5 cm). The length of time between each moult increases as the animal get older to once a year in full grown animals. Most Cherax species take about one and half years to reach maturity (15-20 cm). During the moulting phase the crayfish will stop eating and reduce activity, until on the day of the moult it will appear motionless. Crayfish moult their shell, (ecdysis), by splitting their tail along the back and then flicking the old shell off. The head and claws are removed last Once the shell is removed, crayfish are very soft and will hide until they have expanded into their new shell and the shell has hardened. It is advisable to leave the old shell in the tank as the crayfish will eat it as a source of calcium. Adding a small amount of calcium carbonate to the water will help make a stronger shell.