Chamaeleon Crab (Metasesarma aubryi)
| Chamaeleon Crab Metasesarma aubryi | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Name | Chamaeleon Crab |
| Name Lat. | Metasesarma aubryi |
| Synonym | Red Apple Crab |
| Family | Sesarmid Marsh Crabs |
| Family lat. | Sesarmidae |
| Order | Decapoda |
| Order lat. | Decapoda |
| Origin | Southeast Asia |
| Habitat | Mangroves, estuaries |
| Diet | Leaves, fruits, crab food |
| Humidity | 70-90 % |
| Behavior | Peaceful |
| Keeping | Pair, harem |
| Care Level | Easy |
| Housing | Humid terrarium |
| Breeding | None reported |
| Life Span | 2-3 years |
| Protection | No |
| Metric Units | |
| Size | 5-6 cm |
| Temperature Day | 24-28 °C |
| Temperature Night | 20-22 °C |
| Housing Size | 60 x 40 x 40 cm |
| US Units | |
| Size | 2"-2.4" |
| Temperature Day | 75-82 °F |
| Temperature Night | 68-72 °F |
| Housing Size | 25" x 15" x 15" |
Distribution and habitat
Chameleon crabs are widely distributed in the Indo-Pacific region from Thailand to Indonesia and northern Australia. They live mainly terrestrially in the intertidal zones of rivers, in mangrove swamps and on sandy beaches with some distance to the sea.
Maintenance
They need a terrarium (aquaterrarium) with a deep substrate suitable for cave building, made of non-rotting substrate such as sand-peat mixture with coconut fibers and sphagnum moss with a drainage, covered with leaves and pieces of bark
In addition, climbing branches with rough bark and branch forks in which water can collect. Artificial plants are advantageous as privacy screens, which can be easily removed for cleaning
They need a shallow water basin for drinking and bathing that is not too deep (danger of drowning). Regular water changes are required to maintain water quality
Daily 1-2 times the inside of the terrarium must be finely sprayed with water (humidity), but better is a rain or fog system.
| Temp. air: 24-28 °C | Temp. water: approx. 25 °C | Humidity: 70-90 % |
The lighting duration must be 10-14 hours depending on the season. Daylight fluorescent tubes with low UV content are very suitable, supplemented with spotlights.
Diet
They need animal and vegetable food. For a species-appropriate diet, the food supply consists of foliage (oak, beech, sea almond tree), vegetables (peas, carrots, zucchini, etc.), fruit (apple, pear, banana, etc.) supplemented with high-quality dry food for fish, crabs and shrimp (spirulina tabs) and commercially available frozen food mixtures. Occasionally, chicken meat and smelt can be offered. It is important to regularly add minerals (cuttlebone, calcium powder) and vitamins
A regular and varied diet promotes health and prevents deficiency symptoms. Unaccepted food should be removed after 4-5 hours.
Behaviour and compatibility
They are well tolerated social animals and should be kept in a harem, one male with several females, or at least in pairs. A socialization with other mangrove crabs is possible, but it is better to keep them in a species tank.
Basically only compatible species with similar requirements should be kept together
Reproduction and breeding
Males have much larger claws and a pointed abdominal valve (pleon), which is rounded and much wider at the top in females
The females carry several thousand eggs in their abdominal pouches until the larvae hatch. The larvae live planktonically in seawater, where they go through several stages of development until they return to land as finished juvenile crabs about 5 mm in size.
There are no known reports of successful breeding.
Important
With increasing age, the animals live predominantly terrestrial. They can communicate with each other by gestures and knocking signs and change their color according to their mood, but the claws always remain red.
Special care should be taken to cover the terrarium well, as they are escape specialists. Escaped crabs dry out quickly.
The aquaterrarium must have good ventilation without drafts and meet the species specific needs. Measuring devices such as thermometers, hygrometers, etc. are necessary. The lighting must correspond to the species-specific day-night rhythm and must be installed in such a way that the animals cannot injure themselves. Contamination must be removed regularly.
Further literature can be found in your pet store.
References
Text: petdata; Image: Franz Lowak
Source: WERNER (2002): Garnelen, Krebse und Krabben im Süßwasseraquarium, Verlag ACS; ENGELMANN & LANGE (2011): Zootierhaltung - Tiere in menschlicher Obhut: Wirbellose, Verlag Harri Deutsch