Acclimation Day 3 and 4

Day 3

• Systems check: air line power strip on, aquarium filter power strip on
• Mortality check: I went through with a dip net to disturb the crabs and check that they were alive
  • T1: 0 dead
  • T2: 0 dead
  • T3: 0 dead
  • T4: 0 dead
  • T5: 0 dead
  • T6: 0 dead
• Fed all crabs: I shook some crab food on top of the tank where the crabs were located and hoped it was enough

Day 4

• Systems check: air line power strip on, aquarium filter power strip on
• Water on top looked foamy, likely because of aerator intensity
• Cleaned tanks using a vacuum hose for particle debris. Tanks are looking slightly murky but filters are working. A water change every third day should be fine as long as the aquarium filters are working and particle debris is removed.
• Mortality check: While cleaning the tanks I used the hose to poke crabs and determine if they were alive
  • T1: 0 dead
  • T2: 0 dead
  • T3: 0 dead
  • T4: 0 dead
  • T5: 0 dead
  • T6: 1 dead, ammonia level fine
• Fed all crabs: Killed the air stones and aquarium filters for 5 minutes to let pellets sink to the bottom without being drawn into the filter. I shook some crab food on top of the tank where the crabs were located and hoped it was enough
• Added 5 mL ammonium conditioner to each tank

Going forward

1. Standardize food going into each tank
2. Add clamps to chambers so I don’t have to hold the probe to the chamber
3. Obtain flexible mesh for acclimation
4. Cover respiration chambers with paper or black plastic to simulate night conditions
5. Get refractometer for salinity measurements