Dwarf orange crayfish care
Cambarellus patzcuarensis · Lake Pátzcuaro and nearby springs, Michoacán, Mexico
The dwarf orange crayfish, sold as CPO, is a tiny orange crayfish about 2 inches long with its claws, a color form of a brown wild species.
- Tank size
- 10 US gal or larger
- Temperature
- 60 to 77 °F (16 to 25 °C)
- Group size
- Alone or in a pair
- Temperament
- Semi-aggressive
- Adult size
- 2 in (including the claws)
- pH
- 7 to 8
- Hardness (GH)
- 6 to 15 dGH
- Lifespan
- 1 to 2 years
- Diet
- Scavenger
- Care level
- Easy
In a 10 gallon
20¼ × 10½ × 12 9/16 in outsideHow to keep dwarf orange crayfish
The dwarf orange crayfish, sold as CPO, is a tiny orange crayfish about 2 inches long with its claws, a color form of a brown wild species. It stays small enough to share a 10 gallon or larger tank with fish that swim above the bottom. Give it caves and plants to hide in while it molts, hard water, and a tight lid: it climbs out along cables.
Diet: Scavenger: sinking pellets, shrimp food, blanched vegetables, frozen foods. Fish food types compared · how often to feed.
Where they swim: Bottom of the tank.
Dwarf orange crayfish tank mates
Share the temperature and water, and neither side eats, nips or bullies the other. Check the full group in the stocking checker.
Silvertip tetra
2 in · 20+ gal · 72–82 °F
Harlequin rasbora
2 in · 10+ gal · 72–81 °F
Zebra danio
2 in · 10+ gal · 64–77 °F
Cherry barb
2 in · 20+ gal · 73–81 °F
Honey gourami
2 in · 10+ gal · 72–82 °F
Forktail blue-eye rainbowfish
2 in · 10+ gal · 72–80 °F
Lemon tetra
2 in · 20+ gal · 72–82 °F
Emperor tetra
2 in · 20+ gal · 73–81 °F
Keep apart
German blue ram: No shared temperature: dwarf orange crayfish need 60 to 77 °F, German blue rams 78 to 85 °F.
Cockatoo dwarf cichlid: Cockatoo dwarf cichlids eat small crayfish.
Shell-dweller cichlid: Shell-dweller cichlids eat small crayfish.
Pea puffer: Pea puffers belong in a tank of their own.
Fancy goldfish: Fancy goldfish eat small crayfish.
Mystery snail: Dwarf orange crayfish eat snails.
What a dwarf orange crayfish tank needs
A tank of 10 US gallons or more (such as the 10 gallon) with a cover, and the equipment below. Dwarf orange crayfish are comfortable at room temperature, so a heater is optional in a normal home.
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Aquarium Co-Op Easy Flow Sponge Filter, Small
A sponge filter gives gentle flow and cannot pull in small shrimp. It runs from an air pump, with airline tubing and a check valve, all sold separately.
hygger AquaFall Aquarium Filter, S
Rated by the maker for 7–10 US gal, which covers a 10 gallon dwarf orange crayfish tank without being built for a far bigger one.
Aqueon QuietFlow Internal Power Filter 5–15 gal
Rated by the maker for 5–15 US gal, which covers a 10 gallon dwarf orange crayfish tank without being built for a far bigger one.
API Freshwater Master Test Kit
Tests ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH, the readings that matter most before and after adding dwarf orange crayfish.
Seachem Prime 100 mL
Removes chlorine and chloramine from tap water at every water change.
Fluval Edge Thermometer
Shows the water temperature at a glance, but its display reads 64 to 86 °F, so it can’t show the bottom of the 60 to 77 °F dwarf orange crayfish range. Check it with a second thermometer that reads below 64 °F.
More choices, each with the reason it is in or out: Filters for a 10 gallon tank. We don’t list fish food: any good brand of the foods under Diet will do. Plan the whole tank's equipment →
Common dwarf orange crayfish problems
- It pinches slow fish resting on the bottom and eats small snails and shrimplets.
- It hides for days around a molt and is soft and vulnerable then; leave caves in place.
- Copper in medications kills crayfish; check labels.
Test the water first whenever fish look unwell: see what your readings mean, then match the symptom. For disease, a vet who treats fish can diagnose it and advise treatment.
More to compare
Sources
Name, origin and adult size checked against Wikipedia: Cambarellus patzcuarensis. Temperature, pH, hardness, group size, lifespan and minimum tank size are common hobby guidance, not figures from that article. Ranges are the range the species tolerates; aim for the middle. Minimum tank sizes are for an adult group. Drawings are our own; photo credits follow.
Photo credits
Real photographs from Wikimedia Commons, resized and cropped to fit; each is used under the license named.
- Dwarf orange crayfish HellSpawn754, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Silvertip tetra Filtropat; cropped by Kyknos, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Harlequin rasbora NasserHalaweh, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Zebra danio Roundish, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Cherry barb Brian Gratwicke, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Honey gourami Antoon Dommerholt (Dutch Wikipedia), CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Forktail blue-eye rainbowfish Dirk Godlinski, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Lemon tetra SOK, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Emperor tetra 7TP (Krzysztof Bartosik), CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- German blue ram Eric Mengel, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
- Cockatoo dwarf cichlid William Kreijkes, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Shell-dweller cichlid Richard A. Ingebrigtsen, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Pea puffer Beta Mahatvaraj, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Fancy goldfish Benson Kua, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Mystery snail Gabriel Resende Veiga, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Cherry shrimp TheJammingYam, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Amano shrimp Stefanie Leuker, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Ghost shrimp Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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