Title: Freshwater Inverts
Species #:121
Common Name: Blue Knight Lobster Scientific Name: Cherax sp. Kingdom: Animilia
Phylum: Cherax
Class: Malacostraca
Order: Decapoda
Family: Parastacidae Geography / Habitat: The Blue Knight Lobster is from the rivers and streams of New Guinea, and is one of the larger species of crayfish attaining a total length of up to 12". Their colors can vary from a brilliant blue to a bluish brown coloration, and they have relatively small claws for their size. They will rarely hunt for fish as they are generally too slow to catch the latter. Life Strategy: Provide a freshwater aquarium of at least 50 gallons with plenty of rocks, and a substrate with a moderate grain size or finer for the Blue Knight Lobster to burrow in. They can be aggressive towards their own kind, and require plenty of room for territories, and a larger aquarium will be needed if housing more than one. When housing more than one, provide at least 40 gallons per Lobster and include plenty of cover including both rocks and plants. It is very difficult to differentiate between the sexes of these crayfish, and we will not be able to pair them for sale. They are relatively easy to breed in captivity, and the eggs hatch in about 21 days. After hatching, the fry can be fed flake or pellet foods, and should be separated in order to keep them from eating each other. Food / Feed Strategy: These Lobsters are omnivorous, and will act as a scavenger in the aquarium, eating any food that comes to rest on the bottom. Supplement their diet with a quality sinking pellet, flake food and dried algae.
Body Form or Style: N/A Swim / Locomotion Style: N/A Mouth Position: N/A Citation: http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/index.html