HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Well, I have an extra 10 gallon tank. well, i actually change it into my iso tank, but they're only $10 and i can def get a new one!

But anyways
I was thinking about making it a fiddler crab tank.
I know NOTHING about them.

So i was wondering if someone could give me so advice.
1. what do they eat?
2. do they need certain heat/humidity?
3. How many should i get?
4. how big do they get?
5. how should i set up the tank.
6. do i need to have the water not seeping into the sand, or does that matter? my worries are they need to dig down, and it could be soppy in the bottom if the water isn't away from the sand by plexi glass.
7. are they animals i can pick up like the hermies from time to time, or stricktly to watch?


Just basics are greatly appreciated!

Here is the Wikipedia entry for fiddler crabs.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiddler_crab

Here is another link.
http://www.freewebs.com/fiddlercrabcare/

I just got some yesterday! They are a blast! Mine are in a 10gal, I did not use plexi glass and it is fine that way but later on I want to get a 20L and divide it out with plexi into 3rds and add Hermies to the mix too I was just not so sure there was room enough for them the 10gal! Here are pics of my set-up...


It looks better now that the water has settled and they really seem to be happy in their new home.

I fed them blood worms last night along with some veggies They tore the blood worms up! Then today I had juiced an apple and gave them the "mush" that was left over from that and they loved it too!

The humidity is not an issue seeing as they will have standing water in the tank. Heat should be between 75-85F

They do not get bigger that 2 inches across

I have my sand seeping and that is how it was recommended on another site

You can pick them up....I won't be joining you if you do! LOL.

Hope I helped some...I am still very new to them and I still have research to do myself!

I read about them on about.com and it helped a lot but the info does vary do not do what 1 of them said and put 8 tablespoons salt per gallon of water!

Kim N Kick wrote:I just got some yesterday! They are a blast! Mine are in a 10gal, I did not use plexi glass and it is fine that way but later on I want to get a 20L and divide it out with plexi into 3rds and add Hermies to the mix too I was just not so sure there was room enough for them the 10gal!...

That's actually not too bad. You might also want to check this out as well (read through all the way):

http://badmanstropicalfish.com/brackish/brackish.html

You would also want to begin checking the hardness of the water (which is different from the salinity or saltiness of the water). For crabs, I assume a pH of about 8-8.3 is adequate for proper shell growth, regardless if it is a reef, freshwater, land, or brackish water crab.

For land hermit crabs, it is generally assumed that when you mix the necessary ocean grade water such as Instant Ocean, the water is already reef grade with a pH of about 8 to 8.3.

So that's another dimension of maintenance you would probably need to look into when keeping these shelly creatures. They sell pH kits in the aquatics section of the petshops, usually where they have cichlids or marine fish.

if the Ph were off, how would i change it?

And I was reading about them, and someone said 1.5 teaspoons was all they put per gallon for salt water.??

Also, how long do they live?

Cheyenne wrote:if the Ph were off, how would i change it?

If the pH was too high (above 8.5), I would just add more neutral (plain fresh or salt) water with a pH of 7.

If it is too low, there are pH formulas sold in the petshops that can increase pH, such as liquid drops.

Either way, when adding or subtracting, you will need those pH test kits (about $15) and need readings made about 24 hours after changes are made. So you would need to at least set the aquarium about 24 hours before adding the crabbies.

Cheyenne wrote:And I was reading about them, and someone said 1.5 teaspoons was all they put per gallon for salt water.??

That I am not sure. I would just rely on a hydrometer and read the above mentioned link to measure the salinity of brackish water aquariums.

Cheyenne wrote:Also, how long do they live?

About 3-5 years, I think, if not less. Generally "true" crabs (fiddlers, rock crabs, land crabs - any non-hermit crab) have this lifespan.

Going super low tech here. I do everything the same for my fiddlers that I have done for my herms. I have had the same 4 together for the last 2 years and I am getting ready to add 2 more when I get a chance to get down state next.

lol, well that sounds nice. Anyone else do similar things for their fiddlers as hermits?