Strawberry question

[Vasliki]

Hi there,

Just a quick question for those of you who've had Strawberries in the past.

What is the longest you've had a Strawberry for? I recently lost two of mine, likely due to PPS (which was such a shame...) Someone mentioned that Straws tend to be highly delicate and prone to random deaths.

Of course, I would love to try these darlings again, perhaps in their own tank (away from my PPs). But I would like to know what I'm getting into with Straws. Do they generally have shorter life spans and prone to random deaths? Or are they just more sensitive to PPS and therefore appear to have problems at the beginning?

Can we perhaps talk a bit about Straws and their problems?

I'm still hurting from the loss of Red and Coral, so I'm hoping this can provide some closure and information for the future. What are your thoughts?

[Vasliki]

Anybody?

[wodesorel]

Sorry, no straws here. I've been too scared by all the stories.

[Kilimanjaro]

All of my Straws have only lasted a very small amount of time in my crabitat. I don't even think I've had any of them for longer than a year. It seems like they are definitely harder to take care of, and it's possible that we're missing some aspect of their care in captivity.

I've had pretty good luck with virtually every other species. I've had a PP for over five years now, and I've had Violas for two years and they're still healthy. Ecuadorians are usually pretty stable in my 'tat, and I've had my little Indo for a while, too. The Ruggies and Blueberry are doing great as well. It just seems that Straws always have a harder time in captivity.

[wolfnipplechips]

Their difficulty (and beauty) makes me want to try them.

[Vasliki]

It seems like they are definitely harder to take care of, and it's possible that we're missing some aspect of their care in captivity.

This thought occurred to me as well.... That we're missing something critial to their long-term survival.

Makes me want to try a Strawberry only tank and try for the long-term. Sort of like a Strawberry experiment. Luckily, a local supplier has signed up to get strawberries with their hermit shipments, so I will have more access to these beauties if I want to try it.

My only fear is getting attached again and losing them

Perhaps with their high salt water requirement, they need something from actual live ocean water? Meaning, live rock, etc? Something we're missing along that line...

Perhaps a lighting requirement (UV levels)?

Thoughts?

Their difficulty (and beauty) makes me want to try them.

Me as well. So tempted, but so cautious at the same time.

[Nethers]

My guess is they need a different than average PH level in their saltwater, as well as humidity through salt water, not average water. If you lived at the beach, I think you may be in luck.

It would be hard to supply salt water humidity unnaturally as the salt can be prone to breaking devices over time, and this is just my theory.

[Vasliki]

My guess is they need a different than average PH level in their saltwater, as well as humidity through salt water, not average water. If you lived at the beach, I think you may be in luck.

It would be hard to supply salt water humidity unnaturally as the salt can be prone to breaking devices over time, and this is just my theory.

No it's a very good theory! It makes a lot of sense. You may have a very good point there. A saltier environment overall, then? That would explain why they don't last super long in 'fresh' water environment and always hang out in the salt water dish.

Hmmm... I like that. Might need a Strawberry specific tank, then, with a heavier salt presense.

[wodesorel]

Strawberries are found in the wild in the same areas as Indos and Ruggies, so they really shouldn't need anything more than those species. (And I do mean the same area - this paper talks about how all three are collected on the same island: http://scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu/bi ... sequence=3 )

It may be that they just don't make it through the shipping very well. It could be whoever is collecting and shipping them or it could be at the distributers' warehouses. There's really no way of finding out where the crabs are coming from or who the companies involved are, so they might be collected animals from an unhealthy place to begin with. It could be something missing in their diet in captivity. The might be reacting to something in our water, or our decorations.

There are so many possibilities to explain why they are so delicate, and no real way of finding out answers.

[eloise13]

They could be more aquatic or climb more. Maybe if some could get a large tank, have a "tree" section, a normal section and then a nano reef. Would be a lot of had work, but could help us. Probably would work best with like a 200 gallon tank and dedicate 20 gallons+ to the reef.

[nibbler125]

I don't have any but I heard that they unlike Es and PP they are very sensitive to tempiture and humidity changes.

[eloise13]

I don't have any but I heard that they unlike Es and PP they are very sensitive to tempiture and humidity changes.

There has to be more then that. In the wild, it doesn't stay 80 degrees and 80% humidity. No where has conditions that steady.

[CrabbyMom33]

There has to be more then that. In the wild, it doesn't stay 80 degrees and 80% humidity. No where has conditions that steady.

I agree. I recently got 4 straws and the reality is that my main tank is stable, but our house temp changes so the tank does change throughout the day by about a 5 degree range. I currently have them in a separate tank and the temp is ranging from 77 to 81 at the front of the tank. The UTH is on the back and I'm having to vent the lid at the front due to the substrate being initially pretty moist. I figure the range along the back where they are hanging out is more like 79 to 83. I'm anxious to see how they do. The humidity is currently running a little high in the 82 to 84 range, but I figure that is pretty close.