Blue "Ghosthead" Florida Crayfish - Procambarus alleni

Originally the Procambarus alleni comes from Florida/USA, but the color form "Ghosthead" was grown in the aquarium. This is a blue alleni with a very bright, almost white-transparent colored head, which reminds a little bit of the Procambarus clarkii "Ghost". This crayfish is adaptable and is considered quite hardy. The reproduction is very good. Measured without claws, the Procambarus alleni reaches a body length of about 7 to 10 cm. The males have slimmer and longer claws than the females. However, the animals are really best identified by their sexual appendages under the abdomen. The males have mating styli, which are clearly visible as a V-shaped structure at the transition from the head carapace to the abdomen. Females lack this structure, but have sexual openings at the base of the second pair of walking legs and five pairs of webbed legs under the abdomen; males have only three.

When the crabs have mated, the female attaches fifty to one hundred eggs to her webbed legs. During the three to five weeks it takes for the young crabs to hatch, the female cleans and cares for the eggs. The fully developed, hatched young crayfish also remain under the mother's abdomen for a few more days until they finally leave her and begin an independent life. Young Prcambarus alleni are very cannibalistic, therefore they need many hiding places like brown autumn leaves or perforated bricks, special crayfish burrows adapted to their size, stone and wooden structures, ..

In a structure-rich furnished 54-l-aquarium one can hold a male and a female of the Florida crayfish. Climbing possibilities and areas where the animals can dig are more important than swimming space. A crayfish aquarium must be absolutely tightly closed (stuff any gaps well with filter floss!), since all crayfish climb very well and as extremely curious animals also like to leave the aquarium on occasion. What is usually no problem in nature is almost always fatal for the crayfish in our dry homes! The Ghosthead eats or nips off most aquarium plants. Fast growing plants like waterweed, hornwort or nixwort are just as suitable in an aquarium for Procambarus alleni "Ghosthead" as floating plants (salvinia, shellflowers, frogbit, ...). Especially still smaller, younger crayfish like to sit in their roots.

With dwarf shrimps, which have comparable requirements to the water values as the Ghosthead, one can socialize this crayfish well. From time to time shrimp may be caught and eaten, as well as fish living in the aquarium. Long fins have no place with crayfish. Snails and mussels are part of the food spectrum of the Florida crayfish in nature, also in the aquarium they are very gladly cracked and eaten. Do not mix with crabs, large arm shrimp or large predatory fish!

Procambarus alleni is native to North America, which makes it a possible vector for crayfish plague . Under no circumstances should it be released or otherwise allowed into the wild, the disease is a major threat to our native as well as Papuan, New Zealand, Indonesian and Australian crayfish. Again, care must be taken that the water from the tank containing the North American crayfish does not come in contact with the water of the other crayfish, and of course the crayfish themselves.

The Ghosthead is a little picky omnivore, eating all kinds of food as well as brown autumn leaves or vegetables, also frozen food and special crayfish food are taken with pleasure.

Our food recommendation: Freshwater crayfish have a very varied diet in the wild. The Natureholic Crayfish Feed Sticks contain in a biologically balanced form only those ingredients that these crayfish in this or similar form to their natural food spectrum. This naturally supports and promotes moulting, growth and reproduction. Due to their protein content they are ideally suited for omnivorous crayfish of the genera Procambarus, Cambarus, Cambarellus, Astacus and the Cherax crayfish from Australia, which are basically omnivores that like to eat animal as well as vegetable food. The crayfish of the genus Cherax from Papua also like to eat a portion of animal food when they are young, but later they switch mainly to plant food.

Our plant recommendation: Use for planting NatureHolic InVitros. These are free of snails, planaria and other unwanted co-inhabitants. Also free of algae spores, bacteria and fungi.

Expert Tip: We recommend for fish keeping the NatureHolic 3 Phase Liquid. The care set offers the best all-round protection for your animals. It ensures optimal conditions for successful breeding and keeping.