Hermit Crabs in a Salt water Aquarium

[Caboyd1977]

My neighbors kids got two hermits a couple of years of while on a beach vacation. The kind you can buy in a gas station or surf shop. Now they’re moving to an apartment and wanna ditch the little rascals. They’re looking for someone to take them in and I’m considering it. However, I know nothing about this type of Hermit Crab. I keep a salt water aquarium and house a variety of hermits there as cleaners (mostly blue and red leg hermit). Can these terrarium hermits survive in a salt water aquarium? They come with a 5 gallon terrarium with a heater and a light and all the fixings. So, it wouldn’t be an issue for me to pop them on an end table for save keeping. But if they can survive in the aquarium, that would be excellent. Anyone willing to offer direction?

[Moonlightdreams]

My neighbors kids got two hermits a couple of years of while on a beach vacation. The kind you can buy in a gas station or surf shop. Now they’re moving to an apartment and wanna ditch the little rascals. They’re looking for someone to take them in and I’m considering it. However, I know nothing about this type of Hermit Crab. I keep a salt water aquarium and house a variety of hermits there as cleaners (mostly blue and red leg hermit). Can these terrarium hermits survive in a salt water aquarium? They come with a 5 gallon terrarium with a heater and a light and all the fixings. So, it wouldn’t be an issue for me to pop them on an end table for save keeping. But if they can survive in the aquarium, that would be excellent. Anyone willing to offer direction?

Hi! It's wonderful you're thinking about helping these little guys out.

They are land hermit crabs, so they cannot survive underwater. They do need access to both fresh and saltwater, though. They have modified gills, so the humidity should stay in the 70-80% range. Anything lower could cause gill damage, but anything higher is safer. Temperature should be somewhere between 75-85.

A 5 gallon is typically too small for hermits - they can be very active sometimes. You need enough space for two pools (salt and freshwater, deep enough to submerge, but with easy access in and out), a food dish, extra shells, maybe a hide or two, and some things to climb. They also need deep substrate, as they molt periodically and make caves in the substrate to do so. (3x as deep as the biggest crab, or 6". Whichever is deeper.) Playsand or Eco Earth is usually the best bet. You can mix the two, if you'd like.

I have a lot more to say and not enough time to say it, so I'll spare you and leave you with these handy dandy care sheet links.


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[Caboyd1977]

Thanks a million. I think I have a spare 10 or 20 gallon tank lying around somewhere. I’ll head to pet smart in the morning to get supplies to set them up nice. A shame they can’t go into the aquarium. They’d have about 2 dozen cousins to hang with.

[curlysister]

Be sure to read through the care sheets and guides. Unfortunately, pet store staff aren't always that knowledgeable about proper hermit crab care - many people have been sold things that staff say are 'safe', but they really aren't.