Crayfish could sometimes behave very strangely, which could be either alarming or amusing, depending. Have you seen a crayfish move rocks before? Of course, if you have pet crayfish in your tank, you must have seen this at some point. If you have, the question you might want to ask is why do they do that, why is my crayfish moving rocks? well, in this article, we will tell you 4 reasons why they might do that.
Why is my crayfish moving rocks? Crayfish move rocks to make a home, and also when they are about to Molt.
Seeing a crayfish move rocks one after the other could be a funny sight, but they don’t do it for fun.
There are a few reasons why they do this, and in this article, we are going to see 4 of the reasons why your crayfish might be moving rocks.
If you see yours doing this, there is no cause for alarm, as it’s all-natural, and so, you have absolutely nothing to worry about.
4 Reasons why crayfish move rocks
1. When they are about to reproduce:
We all know that female crayfish do lay eggs and they are not livebearers.
When a female crayfish is pregnant and want to lay her eggs, she will need a secure place that is free from disturbance to do so.
This is very natural for them, and they do it every time.
A pregnant crayfish will always dig anything that she could lay her hands on to make a hiding place for herself, so, she will dig at anything including rocks, substrates, and even plants.
So, if you see yours digging or moving rocks, you might have to check her tail if she has eggs there.
2. They do it to make a home:
We all know that crayfish are good at hiding, so they will always hide in their home and come out whenever they feel like it.
These homes are what they made for themselves. If there is no cave or any suitable home for them, then they can make one for themselves by moving and arranging rocks to fit their taste.
This is funny, but it’s the fact. Crayfish do move rocks sometimes to make their homes and dominate their territory.
So, If you see yours moving rocks, then it’s probably making a home, so leave it to do what it does best.
3. Your Crayfish might be preparing to Molt:
Many times, crayfish move rocks to prepare themselves for Molt.
When they molt or are in the process of Molting, they are very weak and vulnerable and could be killed by anything.
They prepare for this period by either building hiding and securing places for themselves by arranging rocks to hide or digging substrates to hide, or even choosing to stay in a cave if there is one, and block the entrance with rocks so that other animals won’t penetrate.
These behaviors are very common with crayfish that want to molt, so when you see them move rocks, you might start preparing them too by providing good quality foods that contain a good amount of iodine, calcium, and vitamins to help them.
4. It’s just arranging things:
Do you know that naturally, crayfish are fond of arranging and rearranging things?
Sometimes if you see a crayfish moving stones and other materials, it doesn’t necessarily mean they want anything, but they are just doing it.
It s natural to them, who knows if they derive joy in doing that anyways.
So naturally, a cray might decide to move things about for no good reason.
Do Crayfish Need Rocks?
Rock is one of the most important things crayfish need in their tank to hide and play with it.
Crayfish need rocks for various things such as hiding, playing with them, and also lying in them.
So crayfish needs rocks.
