Zebra crab "Kiunga coffee red" - Cherax peknyi

The Cherax peknyi "Kiunga Coffee Red" comes from a water body near the small town of Kiunga on Papua. This pretty crayfish is a particularly beautifully colored local form of the tiger crayfish Cherax peknyi.

The bright orange-red joints on the claw arms of the Cherax crayfish catch the eye directly. The claws, which are partially hairy on the underside, are coffee-brown and end in white to beige claw tips with dark spots. The carapace of Cherax peknyi "Kiunga Coffee Red" shows shades from coffee brown to brown-orange to gray-blue. The abdomen of the Cherax from Kiunga is dark blue to dark brown-blue and is interrupted on each segment by narrow light transverse bands. The legs are blue to dark blue with orange joints. At approximately 12-14 cm in body length, the Kiunga Coffee Red is considered a rather medium-sized cherax.

The males of the Kiunga Coffee Red have relatively large, bulky claws, those of the females are somewhat slimmer. A definite sex distinction can be made based on the gonopores, the sexual orifices. In the male Kiunga Coffee Red they are located between the attachments of the 3rd pair of legs, whereas in the females they are more posterior and located between the fifth pair of walking legs.

Cherax peknyi "Kiunga Coffee Red" can be kept together with shrimps and also with peaceful surface-dwelling ornamental fish - however, it cannot be excluded that the crayfish helps itself to the fish. Snails are eaten, they belong to the natural food spectrum of Cherax peknyi. This also applies to large snails in the aquarium.

Large crayfish are not compatible with other crayfish. You should also not keep the Kiunga Coffee Red with other site variants of Cherax peknyi, even if they are the same species - the danger of undefinable variant mix is real. The Cherax peknyi "Kiunga Coffee Red" should definitely never have contact with crayfish from North America or the water they are kept in. They can transmit the pathogen of crayfish plague, which is fatal for Cherax. The Kiunga Coffee Red should also not be kept in the aquarium with crabs, large-armed shrimp and fan shrimp.

A pair of the beautiful Cherax peknyi Kiunga Coffee Red, which grows to medium size, can be kept well in a structurally rich aquarium with an edge length of 80 cm or more. Important are numerous hiding places and evasion possibilities as well as optical territory borders, so that the stress level remains as low as possible with your Cherax crayfish. Since Cherax peknyi usually do not like plants very much, you can plant your Cherax aquarium with robust perching plants. Because the crayfish sometimes burrow, it is important to place the aquarium decorations so that they cannot be undermined. Otherwise, the crayfish could be crushed or even have their windows smashed if the decoration tips over. Please take good care that the aquarium is covered without gaps, and also tamp the cable shafts well - Cherax peknyi "Kiunga Coffee Red" is an active climber and likes to get up and explore its surroundings.

The Kiunga Coffee Red can live well in the aquarium with a wide range of water values. The pH value should be between 6.5 and 8, the temperature should be permanently above 20 °C and 25 °C should be exceeded only in exceptional cases and only very briefly, even in summer.

The Kiunga Coffee Red shows itself like all variants of Cherax peknyi in the aquarium with good attitude quite ready to reproduce. The females carry 40 to 80 eggs under their abdomen for about six to eight weeks. After the gestation period, the young crayfish hatch out, initially hanging out with the mother under the pleon for a few more days, expanding their range of movement more and more over time until they finally leave their mother and start looking around the aquarium on their own. If you transfer the mother to a nursery aqu arium for release and put her back when the offspring are finally out on their own, the chances of survival for the young crayfish will increase significantly. Like all variants of Cherax peknyi from Papua, young Kiunga Coffee Red crayfish grow quite slowly. They are quite cannibalistic in the beginning and therefore need good and numerous hiding places even in a separate rearing aquarium. A decent layer of brown fall foliage at the bottom of the aquarium provides the small Cherax peknyi not only a good, permanent food source, but also shelter and hiding places.

Young Cherax peknyi "Kiunga Coffee Red" prefer a mixed diet of plants and animal food during the growth phase , whereas the adult Cherax peknyi eat mainly plant food. Too much animal protein can lead to molting problems for them.

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

Expert Tip: We recommend when keeping fish 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.