HCA: Hermit Crab Association

They're more equatorial, so temp and humidity steady at 80/80% is a good idea - whereas purple pinchers can handle more extremes and swings. They won't have as long of a lifespan in captivity either though there's been no clear understanding as to why that happens with "exotic" species. Lilas were v...

Definately not purple pinchers. My gut instinct is Lila. That you got them randomly and for the same price as PPs would be extremely surprising. It would be more likely that they'd be either Ruggies (but that's a huge crab) or Violas (but the eyes don't quite match), so I do doubt it's either of tho...

I have the cork tile background in my crested geckos Skyscraper with a UTH on the back myself. Now, his tank doesn't have to be kept super warm, I think I have the thermostat set to 72, but the room the tank is in hits 50 in the middle of winter so that's still 20 degrees of heating. I don't have ex...

Where is the thermostat probe? It should be inside the tank where the crabs are, and set to where you want the tank (80 degrees or whatever) in order to control the amount of heat being produced. UTH will always have run hot in order to warm the entire space in front of it. They may get up to 130 on...

Is your substrate moistened enough so that it holds shape when squeezed, but doesn't drip? 35% is insanely low even with a ventilated lid, thats like normal house humidity without anything damp being nearby. If your substrate is moist, then I strongly suggest calibrating your humidity gauge because ...

This kind of behavior can have a few different causes but none of them can be treated for or even ruled in/out because of the limitations in examining a hermit crab. Neuro/clumsy behavior can come about from nutritional imbalances, chemical exposure, physical injuries, organ failure, even hormonal i...

I only had mating behavior once I had very large males. All my eggladen females have been mediums or older. Females do not need a male present to produce eggs, but the eggs will be unfertilized..

Please give at least a general location so local adopters can find you!

I would say that's C. rugosus.

C. compressus can look really similar at that size - and are usually found in intact nerites like that - but their coloration tends to be intensely strong blues or greens.

Do you know what species he is, or can you describe what he looks like? (The tapatalk app will allow you to upload a photo.) Both marine and land hermit crabs live in cuba, and they have wildly different care requirements.

Tall tanks support even less crabs because there's less floor space for molting and moving around, let alone space for water and food bowls. It would be comparable to a 5 gallon, which is really only appropriate for micro crabs for a couple of years max. There's no way to make it okay for long term ...

Did he molt recently? I've had purple pinchers change shells and show florescent yellow on their abdomens before, have also had joints show up bright orange. It tends to be a temporary pigment burst that fades before their next molt.

And don't dig! A molting crab can be down for months at a time without surfacing. Disturbing them can lead to accidental death, and if for some reason they were to pass while buried it won't harm their tankmates in any way. Waiting is always the best choice, even though it can be hard to do!

If they do it just to eat or rest for a little while and then move to another location, it's no big deal and it's just them being little weirdos. I've seen my own crabs do this occasionally, usually when something yummy catches their attention. If they're in that position and not moving for an exten...

Is he sitting like the crab in these photos?

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