Marbled Crayfish clones itself? New species? Is this ad for real?

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i've owned many marble crays (started as one turned into hundreds and they do eat fish. Mine took out a 2 inch blood parrot when it was an inch long. It was well fed and the bp was plenty strong and went on to live until just recently. Any fish that gets to close and is slow enough to be casught will so if u like your fish don't get one. Also If you don't want your tank completly taken over by tons of crays stay away and get a different species. I had one in a ten, then had about 100 in a ten so moved a few to my 20 not to long after that had a couple hundred inmy ten an a hundred or so in my 20. ended up feeding every one to my oscar. (O and i got mine from my lfs for $14)

O and i have one in a 10 right now that is about an inch and a half and is in berry. (it has taken out about 10 danios and a couple serpaes) SO again they will eat fish if they can catch them!!! I'm not saying don't buy them because i really enjoy mine, just know that facts

If anyone wants to know any real info about them that is coming from someone who is not trying to profit from them (no offence to anyone) you can PM me.
 
Marmorkrebs;2042599; said:
Folks who like to do fishing are now raising colonies of Marbled Crayfish as bait.
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I registered solely for the purpose of asking people NOT to do that.
Here in California we have a species of salamander called the California Tiger Salamander. It is different from the eastern Tiger Salamander. Fisherman would buy larvae from the Eastern tiger salamander to use as bait, and either they would get off the hook or the fisherman would dump the excess at the end of the day, but the net result is that the California Tiger Salamander is now highly endangered (not sure if it is listed as critically yet, it should be) because most populations that survived habitat destruction are now actually hybrid populations.

Many of our native frogs are on the brink of extinction because of the introduction of trout into our alpine lakes. Many of our native fish are in serious trouble because of the introduction of non native fish (such as catfish) into our rivers.

Please do NOT use this crawfish as bait. Especially since it is parthenogenic, escaped bait could cause serious ecological disasters. Now, I'm not one who thinks keeping these critters should be outlawed, however, if keepers are irresponsible and it gets into the ecosystem - you can bet that will happen. So please, do not use them as fish bait.

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With respect to their origins - my suspicion is that they are a hybrid.
Someone else mentioned parthenogenic whiptail lizards. Being a herp nut, I know a little about that. Whiptails ordinarily reproduce sexually, but sometimes when two species hybridize, the result is an all female parthenogenic population. That's where the parthenogenic "species" of whiptails came from. They are hybrids, and like plants, the number of chromosomes is equal to the sum of both parent species.

I just heard about this crawfish today - but I'm guessing it is a similar thing going on.

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Anyway, please do not use them as fishing bait, or in any other way that could result in their accidental (or intentional) release into the wild. It could cause serious ecological damage, including the potential extinction of other species.
 
Marmorkrebs;2042599; said:
Yes boys and girls, that is my own "ad" found on Craigslist. In the sense that I am looking to rehome some of my Marbled Crays, yes it is an "Ad". I find there is a lot of misinformation out there about the Marbled Cray so I like to bring some attention to it with factual info.

No, it does not "store sperm" as some would like to believe. There are no males in this species, so that theory is kaput. These are not guppies, my friends, these are Marmorkrebs. They are NOT P Alleni - they are their own species.

And yes, I do make a special food for them, having studies their dietary habits - and even add a little Haematococcus pluvialis for color and health.

I have noticed some pet stores (and individuals online) selling other species as Marbled Cray (Marmorkrebs). These resemble the Marbled Cray (as do many cray species), but they will end up eating aquarium fish and will NOT reproduce by themselves. True Marbled Crayfish will sometimes eat a dead fish, but will never attack a live one, and prefer a plant based diet.

Genetic research labs are very interested in the Marbled Cray because of its unique DNA. Thinking in terms of stem cell reserach, and other areas, this animal has a lot to offer the world.

But for aquarium keepers, it s cool to watch, and proves a source of animals to use as Feeders. Folks who like to do fishing are now raising colonies of Marbled Crayfish as bait.

And while the GOOGLE of Marbled Cray or Marmorkrebs will always list the UK-Based panic articles, most scientists in the USA will poo-poo the idea that this species will "take over" anywhere in the wild. But then again, folks in the UK do like to go a bit overboard with anything sensational, especially if it can cause folks to get upset. Do your research if you are really concerned about it, and talk to some USA based biologists who are working with this animal.

I am posting new videos of the Marbled Crayfish - some on YouTube - showing egg development in different stages, including live babies hanging on to mama after birth.

Check out www.MarbledCrayfish.com (aka www.MarbledCray.com) to see updated info and pics.
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Did you post the ad in Austin, because I remember seeing something very similar. I don't reallt have any feelings on the subject, but if I remember correctly, you posted the ad several times and I almost flagged you. Cool crayfish I guess, though.
 
The ad was posted in several regional craigslist - and most flagged them.
I didn't but I guess someone else did because it disappeared.

I agree it is cool - I am half tempted to set up a tank for them, though I honestly don't know what the bleep I would do with all the potential offspring - maybe my local fish store would want them as feeders.
 
it's true... their for real...

that beeing said, their as invasive as any snakehead... thinkg about it.. all it takes is one little guy to get free and boom...you've just exposed a foreight species to an ecosystem.... their illegal in Canada... i'm sure not so legal in the states.. thats why the 'rehome' little gig instead of 'selling'
 
TheJD;2132247; said:
Does anyone know a good source to get these on-line? This sounds like an insanely cheap way to feed my snapping turtle.
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US breeders are offering these crays on aquabid.com
 
Yes, these crayfish are real. I bought one in July of last year and now have dozens crawling around my tank with more still to come. I have sold a couple already and they make excellent food for the oscars and pacu. I have some available now if anyone is interested.
 
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