Mangrove crab - Blue Spider - Neosarmatium rotundifrons

The Blue Spider is a great candidate for the aquaterrarium and is scientifically also called Neosarmatium rotundifrons. Originally this mangrove crab comes from Australia, but is also found in East Africa or Southeast Asia. It lives amphibious and is therefore great for the aquaterrarium. Its impressive appearance makes it an interesting eye-catcher, which one likes to observe.

This pretty and colorful crab is quite social and can be kept as a pair, but also in groups, it is quite sociable. It reaches a body size of about 5 cm. The males can be recognized by their usually somewhat larger and more colorful claws, also their abdominal valve is V-shaped and somewhat smaller than the U-shaped of the females. It has been successfully bred in aquaterrariums, but this is rather the exception and therefore considered rather difficult.

The aquaterrarium for the pretty Blue Spider freshwater crab should have an edge length of at least 80 cm, with the water portion being more than half . A climbing aid is very helpful for them here. However, since the Blue Spider is very clever, the aquaterrarium should be tightly closed, so that on the one hand they do not leave the tank and so that on the other hand the humidity and temperature can be kept appropriately high. The lid must be firmly fixed in any case, otherwise the Blue Spider could even pry it open.

The terrestrial part can consist of highly stratified coco humus and preferably has high humidity and a temperature of 24-26 degrees. Occasionally the pinchers also tend to dig and dig small tunnels. With small hiding places like for example our coconut cave "Husk" or the mossy Terra Shire can be offered to them great retreats. For playing and climbing are also suitable Climbing nets from coconut or roots. Mosses and other hard Dracaena or Ficus species  round off the terrarium great, but it may be that these are dug out. Also, care should be taken with plants that come from flower stores or nurseries, as the mangrove crab is somewhat sensitive to pesticides.

The omnivorous Blue Spider is not a picky eater in the terrarium and can easily be fed with fruit, but also vegetables, special crab food and ornamental fish food. Nevertheless, the main part should be vegetarian and always varied. Insects and algae are also eaten, and the crabs search for their food both on land and in the water. Brown autumn leaves round out the buffet of the great mangrove crab.

Our food recommendation: Crabs in the wild generally have a very varied diet. Most species are omnivorous, and with the Natureholic Crab Feed Sticks we have taken this preference into account. They contain biologically balanced animal and plant components, which are also part of the natural food spectrum of omnivorous crabs in the field in this or a similar way. The valuable ingredients of NatureHolic Crab Feed naturally support the molting, digestion, growth and reproduction of your crabs.

Our Plant Recommendation: For planting, use marsh plants, which are plants that are rooted in soil that is very wet or even submerged, but whose flowers and leaves are usually all or partially in the airspace and can be seen above the water surface. Thus, marsh plants are usually found on and in lakes and streams, but also on and in garden ponds or other bodies of water that provide them with a wet substrate, but still leave room for flowers and leaves to show to the outside.

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