There are more than 60 species, all of them exclusively inhabitants of freshwater, in the genus Aegla, which belongs to the family Aeglidae. All Aegla species are inhabitants of southern South America. To date they have hardly ever been seen in the aquarium hobby. The specimens recently imported by Aquarium Glaser demonstrate, however, that Aegla are thoroughly interesting aquarium occupants. Aegla are relatively small crabs – A. platensis grows little longer than 5 cm. The tail is carried folded beneath the belly, as in the short-tailed crabs. A number of sexual differences are known in Aegla. The males have a longer, broader carapace, the pincers are larger and the left-hand and right-hand pincers are unequally developed. Aegla platensis is sexually mature at an early age. The eggs undergo direct development, and the hatching young immediately look very similar to the parents. There are no free-swimming larval stages. In Aegla platensis in particular egg-carrying females are found year-round, and this species is thus not restricted to breeding at particular times of the year. In the aquarium the first (obviously very short-term) observations indicate that these little creatures live a very secretive life. If they are given fine sand as substrate then they like to bury themselves, disappearing tail-first into the bottom. Aegla crabs don’t appear to have any special food preferences, and both frozen foods (mosquito larvae, Artemia) and dry are taken. The specimens now imported originate from a river called the Arroyo Pozo Hondo, 137 km to the east of Asunción (Paraguay). Like fishes imported from Paraguay, Aegla may also appreciate a slight “winter rest” at 16-18 °C, and in general they should not be kept too warm. If possible the maintenance temperature shouldn’t exceed 24°C even in summer. (Photo: Aquarium Glaser, Text: Izaak den Daas)
| Angaben zum Tier |
| Herkunft |
Paraguay |
