# My Hermit Crab Colony!**lots of pics**



## starmaiden (Feb 5, 2007)

I'm not sure this is the right category, because they are still w/o a spine and belong to the phylum arthropoda...but...Besides Ts, my main thing is hermit crabs! ;P I have about 50 in 6 different tanks. Of the 6 species available in the U.S., I've currently got 4 species. Many are adopted from other people and/or rescues. 

The most common Species available in the U.S., C. Clypeatus, from S. Florida and the Caribbean:

Tiny Male:






Tiny's not so Tiny is he?






Lucky, Male:






Blue, Female:






Some of my C. Compresses, which are from S. America:

MaryAnn, Female:






Symie, Male:






Waldo, Male:






A few of my C. rugosus, which are from the S. Pacific and come in many different colors:
Palau, Male:






Lanka, Male:






Fala, Female:






Fiji, Male:






Andaman, Male:






And lastly, some of my C. perlatus, from the S. Pacific and N. Australia:

Clemetine, Female, saying "Hello Down there!" from the second level:






Another picture of Clementine with Ryukyu, a female C. rugosus:






And Redlinger, Male:






Not a crab but sometimes crabby...My Zoo Director Dax, Male Kitty:


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## Dumaw (Feb 5, 2007)

awesome Hermits! I love this crabs too I wish I had one

congrats they look great


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## Arachnophilist (Feb 5, 2007)

very nice coloration on some of those! what do you feed them? and do they have any water requirements for their tank?


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## starmaiden (Feb 5, 2007)

Arachnophilist said:


> very nice coloration on some of those! what do you feed them? and do they have any water requirements for their tank?


Thanks! Hermit crabs by nature are scavangers, so they will eat both plant and animal materials. The commercial crab foods that pet stores sell usually contain preservatives that are also used as pesticides. And since crabs are closely related to insects, I stay away from those!

The natural diet of the C. rugosus in the wild is algae and tortoise poo. While I can't really provide the tortoise poo, I do try to provide a daily algae source for them. Most people have trouble with their C. rugosus losing color, but my ruggies are doing great!

Some of what I feed: Fresh chicken, fish, scrambled eggs, shrimp, freeze dried crickets and mealworms, unsalted nuts, unsalted peanut butter, lettuce, mango, papaya, coconut, pineapple, honey, banana, spirulina, seaweed, blueberry, strawberry, rasperry, oak bark, oak leaves, mangrove root, corn, carrots, all kinds of organic flowers. It's fun to cook for my crabs and to figure out which foods are their favorite!

They do have specific water requirements for in their tanks, especially the C. perlatus and C. compressus. They need a dechlorinated fresh water source and a ocean water source deep enough so that they can fully submerge. I use bottled spring water and Oceanic brand salt water aquarium mix. Unlike Ts, distilled water is not good for them because they get a lot of their minerals from water.


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## Arachnophilist (Feb 5, 2007)

wow! I must say I am impressed at the extent to which you are going to provide a good life for these things! :clap: :clap:  good for you. great collection. thanks for takin the time to explain it for me.

Chris


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## starmaiden (Feb 5, 2007)

You're welcome! They make fascinating pets. It is unfortunate they can't be bred in captivity bc i would certainly be doing it!

In this country, they are usually marketed towards children, which is unfortunate because they are not really a suitible pet for a child. They are very fragile and die easily from overhandling, their proper tank requirements are very expensive to set up and difficult for a child to monitor. Most species are also nocturnal, so they are active after the child has gone to bed. And they disappear for weeks to months at a time under the substrate to molt! But if given the right conditions, they can live for 20 to 30 years in captivity.


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## Mushroom Spore (Feb 5, 2007)

starmaiden said:


> Unlike Ts, distilled water is not good for them


Distilled water is terrible for all forms of life, Ts included.


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## starmaiden (Feb 5, 2007)

Mushroom Spore said:


> Distilled water is terrible for all forms of life, Ts included.


Wow! I always heard thats what was recommended! :? Should I be using spring water for the Ts also?


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## HerpCenter (Feb 5, 2007)

I love the coloration of the shell in the 5th picture. When your crab decides he wants to move, contact me and send me that shell. lol


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## Mushroom Spore (Feb 5, 2007)

starmaiden said:


> Wow! I always heard thats what was recommended! :? Should I be using spring water for the Ts also?


I use tapwater, personally. If your tapwater is gross and you don't have a faucet filter or filter-pitcher, gallon jugs of regular drinking water should last you ages and ages.


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## AneesasMuse (Feb 5, 2007)

Awww... Symie and Clementine are my favorites!! Redlinger is gorgeous! The cat ain't bad either   ...just don't tell Aneesa I gave another kitty any compliments or she'll ban me from the pooter.


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## Alice (Feb 6, 2007)

wow, i've never seen hermit crabs that attractive. pity they are so hard to maintain, i don't have the time to cook for my pets .


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## spydrhunter1 (Feb 6, 2007)

*Don't *use tap water with hermit crabs, the chlorines will burn the gills of the hermit crabs. I make my own de-chlorinated water using the material sold for conditioning aquarium water. Buy the type the uses 1 drop of product/per gallon of water. Hermits are great...some of mine must be close to 10 years old now. I have a colony of 22 crabs.


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## Alice (Feb 6, 2007)

uh, another question: why do they not reproduce in capticity (someone mentined that above)?


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## spydrhunter1 (Feb 6, 2007)

After the female mates she must release eggs into the ocean, where they live for awhile in the plankton.


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## starmaiden (Feb 6, 2007)

spydrhunter1 said:


> *Don't *use tap water with hermit crabs, the chlorines will burn the gills of the hermit crabs. I make my own de-chlorinated water using the material sold for conditioning aquarium water. Buy the type the uses 1 drop of product/per gallon of water. Hermits are great...some of mine must be close to 10 years old now. I have a colony of 22 crabs.


That's great spydrhunter! And I use spring water for their drinking water. It's dechlorinated and has more minerals than just dechlorinated tap water. 

Alice, they can't reproduce in captivity because no one has been able to get the zoa (sp?) to survive past the free floating plankton stage to the point where they take a shell and come to land. Marine hermit crabs have successfully been bred in captivity, but not land hermit crabs. Although many people are trying! It's very very difficult to get the females gravid in the first place and then to get the eggs and the baby crabs past the ocean plankton stage.


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## Tim Benzedrine (Feb 6, 2007)

I've had one for around 6 years. I had two, but one went thru a moult lat year and it appeared that the other took advantage of the moulter's vulnerability. I found it torn to pieces.  The perpetrator is currently in it's own moult period right now.

It would be great if somebody succeeded in captive breeding, because every one that is sold (probably in the tens of thousands) has been harvested from the wild. And I imagine like any other wild-caught specimens, there is a limit as to how many can be taken before there is an impact on the population.


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## fantasticp (Feb 6, 2007)

starmaiden said:


> The natural diet of the C. rugosus in the wild is algae and tortoise poo. While I can't really provide the tortoise poo,


If you really want tortoise poo, I know a turtle/tortoise nut. He will likely laugh at you but I bet he would sell you some. I suppose you could freeze it until use. What kind of tortoise does it have to come from?


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## spydrhunter1 (Feb 6, 2007)

Here's a pic of the crabs habitat:


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## Mushroom Spore (Feb 6, 2007)

spydrhunter1 said:


> Here's a pic of the crabs habitat


Is that a sponge in the water?


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## spydrhunter1 (Feb 6, 2007)

yes..the sponge in the water dish sets over the under tank heater and creates the required humidity of 70% to 80%. Weekly the sponge is traded out for a fresh one and the old one is washed in salt water. I also cover 2/3 of the tank lid with plexiglass.


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## Mushroom Spore (Feb 6, 2007)

spydrhunter1 said:


> yes..the sponge in the water dish sets over the under tank heater and creates the required humidity of 70% to 80%.


"Sea sponges are harbors for all kinds of bacteria and, though many care books have recommended them in the past, it is now widely believed that they do more harm than good. The big reason to use sponges is not because the hermies like to drink from it but because it was believed it helped to keep their environment humid. An absolute must for a crab since this is how they breathe. *However, most have found that having the sponge didn't affect their humidity levels a bit.*"

From Amazon.com, on the page for some brand's sponge product. Really, I don't see how a sponge would make any difference either, that doesn't make sense. It's the same amount of water--it's the temperature of that heating pad that makes the difference, not some rather unsanitary sponge.


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## spydrhunter1 (Feb 6, 2007)

I think the key is to keep the sponges clean, hence the cleaning with sea water. The Crab Street Journal website (in my opinion one of the best sites) still recommends sea sponges.


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## starmaiden (Feb 7, 2007)

fantasticp said:


> If you really want tortoise poo, I know a turtle/tortoise nut. He will likely laugh at you but I bet he would sell you some. I suppose you could freeze it until use. What kind of tortoise does it have to come from?


Thanks for the offer fantasicp, but while researching it, I decided turtles and tortoises kept in captivity weren't a safe source for food bc the medicines given to them for internal parasites would also kill the crab. They also carry salmonalla which could be passed on to the crabs. And probably the benefit of tortoise poo in the wild anyway is what the tortoise was eating. A captive diet can't really duplicate that. But thanks anyway!  



> I've had one for around 6 years. I had two, but one went thru a moult lat year and it appeared that the other took advantage of the moulter's vulnerability. I found it torn to pieces. The perpetrator is currently in it's own moult period right now.


Sorry for your loss! That's a bummer when that happens!  

Your tank looks great spydrhunter! I like the climbing wall background! As far as the sponges go, they are fine for hermit crabs as long as they are rinsed, dried, and disinfected by zapping in the micro for 2 minutes each week. But I personally prefer bubbler pools to sponges myself. I think bubbler pools work better for keeping humidity up, require less maintenance than sponges, and they are really easy to make.


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## fantasticp (Feb 7, 2007)

starmaiden said:


> Thanks for the offer fantasicp, but while researching it, I decided turtles and tortoises kept in captivity weren't a safe source for food bc the medicines given to them for internal parasites would also kill the crab. They also carry salmonalla which could be passed on to the crabs. And probably the benefit of tortoise poo in the wild anyway is what the tortoise was eating. A captive diet can't really duplicate that. But thanks anyway!


Really only a WC imported tortoise would be treated for parasites like that..... but I really didn't think you wanted a freezer full of poo anyway.


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## Mushroom Spore (Feb 7, 2007)

starmaiden said:


> They also carry salmonalla which could be passed on to the crabs.


You think the ones in the wild don't?


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## starmaiden (Feb 7, 2007)

Mushroom Spore said:


> You think the ones in the wild don't?


Yep they do, but I don't want to risk it in my captive colony.


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## Scorp guy (Feb 8, 2007)

Thanks a lot for sharing starmaiden   :worship: :worship: :worship: :clap: :clap:  Could you post a pic or two of your whole enclosure? i LOVE the blue ones  You seem to be doing a very good ob on caring for them


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## starmaiden (Feb 8, 2007)

Scorp guy said:


> Thanks a lot for sharing starmaiden   :worship: :worship: :worship: :clap: :clap:  Could you post a pic or two of your whole enclosure? i LOVE the blue ones  You seem to be doing a very good ob on caring for them


I will happily post some pictures of my tanks for you! 

Here's one of my 40Bs






Another angle:






My other 40B:






My 20L






My other 20L






My 15 gallon (BTW: That guage has been calibrated, it's 10% off so 90% = 80%):






My 30B:






I'd like to eventually get 2 75 gallon tanks and do some combining so that I have 3 or 4 tanks instead of 6.


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## Pimperator (Feb 9, 2007)

*Smell?*

Do, hermit crabs stink at all?


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## edie (Feb 9, 2007)

its nice to see someone that takes care of their hermit crabs! some of my younger sisters friends keep them and i feel just horrible for them.

yours are beautiful


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## starmaiden (Feb 9, 2007)

Pimperator said:


> Do, hermit crabs stink at all?


Only when they're dead. Sometimes their food stinks, like if you feed them brine shrimp, if you don't remove it the next day.


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## starmaiden (Feb 9, 2007)

edie said:


> its nice to see someone that takes care of their hermit crabs! some of my younger sisters friends keep them and i feel just horrible for them.
> 
> yours are beautiful


Thanks so much! Unfortunately, many people don't take care of them like they should.  I like to think its not because they're cruel, it's because they don't know any better.


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## pinkzebra (Feb 9, 2007)

Wow, your crabs are beautiful! The enclosures too! I had no idea there was more than one species of hermit crab! You said that there are 6 kinds available in the US, but how many different species is there total?

My son's school classroom last year had hermit crabs and they kept dying. The teacher would just go right out and buy more, just so they could die again. :wall:  It drove me nuts.   I tried giving her caresheets and ideas on how to care for them better but she just didn't get it.  The poor things.


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## iucandi (Feb 9, 2007)

*C. Compresses,*

I love the C. Compresses. I do not have this species yet but damn it is beautiful. I would rank this one up there with the perlatus. The Strawberry is one of my favorites. They are really hard to take care of, too. Hes really active, which is nice.  I love your darkest strawberry. The one i have is reallly bright! I was lucky enough to spot him at PetCo, I don't think they knew what they had. He was the only one of the group and of course i snagged him for a low price of $6. Lucky break I'll say.  

Anyways, are the C. Compresses hard to take care of?


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## starmaiden (Feb 9, 2007)

iucandi said:


> I love the C. Compresses. I do not have this species yet but damn it is beautiful. I would rank this one up there with the perlatus. The Strawberry is one of my favorites. They are really hard to take care of, too. Hes really active, which is nice.  I love your darkest strawberry. The one i have is reallly bright! I was lucky enough to spot him at PetCo, I don't think they knew what they had. He was the only one of the group and of course i snagged him for a low price of $6. Lucky break I'll say.
> 
> Anyways, are the C. Compresses hard to take care of?


I've read that their main issue is molt problems mostly related to diet that are corrected by providing lots of fresh leafy greens. They do require a genuine ocean water mix that you would use for a reef aquarium, like Oceanic or Catalina, and fresh and salt water pools deep enough for them to fully submerge since they are shore dwellers. They also like to bask too and are active during the daytime, so a dayglo bulb is a must for them, and they require the warmer temps...just like the perlatus. But they are hardier than the C. perlatus. They also prefer D shaped shells like nerites, cancellarias, babylonias, and calf moons.

Most of the larger chains don't carry the C. compressus. You can usually find them at mom n' pop stores. They are easy to confuse with the ruggies, but the ruggies will have thinner eye stalks with a dark smudge underneith, orange inner antannae, prominant stitch marks (/////) and a stripe of a different color on their big pincher.

I drove 700 miles round trip to find my 7 C. compressus! 100 miles per crab!



> Wow, your crabs are beautiful! The enclosures too! I had no idea there was more than one species of hermit crab! You said that there are 6 kinds available in the US, but how many different species is there total?


Thanks so much! There are 17 species worldwide according to this site:
http://www.tonycoenobita.com/species_eng.htm


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## Heather (Feb 14, 2007)

*Wow*

How in the heck did I miss this thread!  

What beautiful crabs, Star... Lanka is still my favorite!

I'm certain that I haven't seen all your tanks!  You need to go over to the Addiction and refresh everyone else memory too!  You did an awesome job explaining everything... you are a crabby Goddess :worship: 

spydrhunter1:  Your Tat is awesome as well!  I love that cholla wood you have in there. 

It is so nice to see all of the good crab care and education going on!  

Hear is my Tat:  75 gallons and 10 tiny to small crabs.  There is one peeking out of the rock cave :} 






It has, of course, changed since this pic, but ya get the idea!  It just makes me feel so warm and fuzzy inside seeing and reading all this positive stuff on these totally underappreciated critters!


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## Zman16 (Feb 14, 2007)

I'm very impressed. I used to have hermits, but none were as cool as those! Your doing an amazing job with yours! :clap:

BTW: I have a pet named Tiny too. Except he is a bit bigger:


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## Heather (Feb 15, 2007)

Awww, your Tiny is very pretty too!  I love the colors!


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## Tleilaxu (Feb 16, 2007)

Whats the biggest hermit crab you can get in the US?


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## Fayt (Feb 17, 2007)

I think C , brevimanus has been recorded to get the largest. However C, clypeatus and C,perlatus have also grown very large.


I will l  post pics of my 40b and crabs in another post, my pics are not on the computer I am using right now


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## dtknow (Feb 17, 2007)

Do you know anyone personally who has described the breeding of marine hermits.

I think people need to try harder to breed land hermit crabs. I think it is that people are not trying...I've never heard of anyone trying.


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## Heather (Feb 18, 2007)

Tammy at crabbagepatch.com is trying... 

She has gotten farther than any other.  Vistit her site and it explains all that has been accomplished.


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## dtknow (Feb 18, 2007)

Wow that is great. The big problem is that she has no/little SW experience. What is needed is a reefer to dedicate time to this project. That is why right now I am just egging people on.


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## Fayt (Feb 18, 2007)

I am planing on attempting it at some point. However it is not only difficult to rear the larvae but it is also difficult to even get a male and a female to mate. Although like tammy it seems like having an outdoor cage in a tropical area, or to have a a very very large tank with a large amount of crabs and a well designed heat and humidity system. Either way it is still hard because you can not really control when they mate or not.

But it would be awsome if sombody managed to do it.


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## Fayt (Feb 18, 2007)

Here are some pics of my tank and crabs. It has change slightly since these but for the most part it is the same.

The 40b the day I it up the right side has change alot since then.







left side.

	
	
		
		
	


	





This is the right side with the sea star I recently added. The lighting is not as good because on of my incandecent day bulbs burnt out.






Nocternal Vewing.

	
	
		
		
	


	





Shell net.






They like to hide in this african rack roots inside.

	
	
		
		
	


	





And now for Crabs. These are mostly my favorites. This shows only about a third of my colony.














One of my small Clypeatus looking down to the pools.





here he is again pearing through some of the 
plants.

	
	
		
		
	


	




 and again.





 One of the rugs chillin in the salt pool.





 One of my favorte Rugs.





my C, violocens hanging with a rug.

	
	
		
		
	


	




 Upside down lol





 Another clypeatus.







Sorry that the files were so big I could not scale them down.


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## starmaiden (Feb 19, 2007)

Zman16 said:


> I'm very impressed. I used to have hermits, but none were as cool as those! Your doing an amazing job with yours! :clap:
> 
> BTW: I have a pet named Tiny too. Except he is a bit bigger:


Very pretty snake! I like your Tiny a lot! :drool: 

Fayt, nice setup and such pretty crabs! I think I recognise that fire red baby C. violascens from a picture you posted in another forum! If I remember correctly, you were dancing in the PetSmart parking lot the day you found him!


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## Fayt (Feb 19, 2007)

Hey starmaiden, its me Silent Protagonist from the HCA ^_^. Silent Protagonist would    not fit so I had to do somthing else.

Cheers ^_^V


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