Hermit Crabs

[christyj3]

I have these hermit crabs that were accidentally brought home from the beach, and I found some online that look like these that are called thin-striped hermit crabs. I thought that’s what they were, but it says online that they are aggressive and I haven’t seen any from them since we’ve had them. Maybe I misidentified their species? Photos included.

 

[IKD]

Aggression could be with seen with limited food or shell/home supply. Some species need access to land as well, so may need to confirm these can stay underwater 100% of the time, especially if you picked these up near the shore

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

Looks like the right species to me - ReefCleaners sells these guys and has some good comments on their keeping on their page (linked below), so I'd give that a read through - but they are hermit crabs (and a relatively large species), so there's always a chance of aggression from them. They are marine hermits, and to my knowledge don't need land, but they do live in the shallows (intertidal zone, seagrass beds, etc.) and are occasionally found on the beach at low tide. They prefer whelk and conch shells and when full grown may need shells that are four inches. Generally, as mentioned, feeding well and providing plenty of shells can help keep hermit aggression in check. Not sure how they do with fish, but these guys are mentioned as being coral safe.

https://www.reefcleaners.org/aquarium-store/tank-cleaners/thin-striped-hermit-detail

 

[christyj3]

Aggression could be with seen with limited food or shell/home supply. Some species need access to land as well, so may need to confirm these can stay underwater 100% of the time, especially if you picked these up near the shore

Thank you! We keep some seaweed and algae sheets in their tank and we also feed them krill with feeding tongs periodically. They also have plenty of empty shells in the aquarium as well, so maybe this is why we haven't seen their aggression. I appreciate your help! I'll definitely keep looking into their preferred habitat.

 

[TheBear78]

I have two in my tank which I introduced at the beginning (~8 months ago) as part of my CUC. They've both grown quite a lot and the larger of the pair is now in a 3" shell. He's a bit clumsy but does his bit to stir up the substrate and pick out uneaten food etc.
The only issue I've had is when he ate a Nassarius snail which I thought might prove to be his downfall but the snail was one of a few new additions and I'm confident that the one he got was on his way anyway. I've had no issues since other than regular shell ugrades!

 

[christyj3]

Looks like the right species to me - ReefCleaners sells these guys and has some good comments on their keeping on their page (linked below), so I'd give that a read through - but they are hermit crabs (and a relatively large species), so there's always a chance of aggression from them. They are marine hermits, and to my knowledge don't need land, but they do live in the shallows (intertidal zone, seagrass beds, etc.) and are occasionally found on the beach at low tide. They prefer whelk and conch shells and when full grown may need shells that are four inches. Generally, as mentioned, feeding well and providing plenty of shells can help keep hermit aggression in check. Not sure how they do with fish, but these guys are mentioned as being coral safe.

https://www.reefcleaners.org/aquarium-store/tank-cleaners/thin-striped-hermit-detail

Thank you so much! This information is very helpful and I will most definitely read through the link you provided!

 

[Tired]

Ah, yep- that's why you really carefully check inside the shells, and ideally leave the shells for the critters that need them. At least these guys are cool, and should do well for you.

The claws look a bit hairier than the thin-striped hermits I'm used to, but the leg stripes are right.

 

[christyj3]

I have two in my tank which I introduced at the beginning (~8 months ago) as part of my CUC. They've both grown quite a lot and the larger of the pair is now in a 3" shell. He's a bit clumsy but does his bit to stir up the substrate and pick out uneaten food etc.
The only issue I've had is when he ate a Nassarius snail which I thought might prove to be his downfall but the snail was one of a few new additions and I'm confident that the one he got was on his way anyway. I've had no issues since other than regular shell ugrades!

Thank you, thank you, thank you!! Do they do well with fish and corals? I really want to add more livestock, but I'm afraid of losing fish! My largest is in a 4"-5" shell and I believe it's fully grown. So far my 55g tank has 4 hermits (all different sizes), live rock, and CaribSea Arag-Alive sand.

 

[christyj3]

Ah, yep- that's why you really carefully check inside the shells, and ideally leave the shells for the critters that need them. At least these guys are cool, and should do well for you.

The claws look a bit hairier than the thin-striped hermits I'm used to, but the leg stripes are right.

I completely agree. We typically just bring home a shell or two as souvenirs when we visit the beach and we've never accidentally brought anything home with us I can tell you we will not be bringing anymore shells home from beaches unless they are store bought from souvenir shops or something. My boyfriend had them in hand for a little over an hour while he walked the beach and checked them every few minutes to make sure that they didn't have anything living in them, but unfortunately it didn't end up that way. We felt absolutely horrible once we realized that they had something in them after he got home, so we immediately started to prepare to make them the best home possible while they were in quarantine. We had trouble finding the correct species at first, but when we saw the thin-striped hermit crabs online they looked exactly like the ones we brought home. I noticed that it said they were a pretty aggressive species online, so I was concerned that maybe we had misidentified them. According to the research I've found on this particular species, the males have hairier legs and claws than the females, so maybe that's why? I'm still researching to make sure I have this species because I don't want to accidentally have them in an incorrect environment. I really appreciate your help!

 

[IKD]

Thank you, thank you, thank you!! Do they do well with fish and corals? I really want to add more livestock, but I'm afraid of losing fish! My largest is in a 4"-5" shell and I believe it's fully grown. So far my 55g tank has 4 hermits (all different sizes), live rock, and CaribSea Arag-Alive sand.

You should not have any problems with them catching/eating fish. They can however go after sick fish that cannot swim away.

 

[Tired]

"Aggressive" in this context probably means "will eat anything it can readily subdue". Lack of visible aggression just means they haven't had a reason to act aggressive yet, probably due to all the food and shells easily available.

If you want to collect shells safely, try clam and other bivalve shells. You can easily see those have no critters in them. Snail shells are best left behind anyway, so hermits can use them. Besides, most intact snail shells you find at the beach will be occupied by either snails or hermits- that's why it's still intact.

Active, vigorous midwater fish should be just fine with them. Corals are probably iffy at best. Though you could keep corals on frag racks attached to the walls, as they won't be able to climb up and eat those.

 

[TheBear78]

Thank you, thank you, thank you!! Do they do well with fish and corals? I really want to add more livestock, but I'm afraid of losing fish! My largest is in a 4"-5" shell and I believe it's fully grown. So far my 55g tank has 4 hermits (all different sizes), live rock, and CaribSea Arag-Alive sand.

I've never seen them hurt coral. They'll disturb them by walking over them or occasionally picking out algae strands but I've never seen any active eating or damaging. Certainly none of my corals have ever shown signs of being nibbled.

Livestock wise I have those two plus;
- 2 Halloween hermits
- Nassarius and Trochus snails
- 1 Coral banded shrimp
- 2 cleaner shrimp
- 2 Clownfish
- 5 Blue/green Chromis
- 1 Convict Tang
- 1 Foxface Rabbit fish
- 1 Orange spot Goby
- 1 Royal Gramma

Not one has ever been troubled by them (bar the aforementioned snail).

 

[christyj3]

You should not have any problems with them catching/eating fish. They can however go after sick fish that cannot swim away.

Thank you so much! I really appreciate it!

 

[christyj3]

"Aggressive" in this context probably means "will eat anything it can readily subdue". Lack of visible aggression just means they haven't had a reason to act aggressive yet, probably due to all the food and shells easily available.

If you want to collect shells safely, try clam and other bivalve shells. You can easily see those have no critters in them. Snail shells are best left behind anyway, so hermits can use them. Besides, most intact snail shells you find at the beach will be occupied by either snails or hermits- that's why it's still intact.

Active, vigorous midwater fish should be just fine with them. Corals are probably iffy at best. Though you could keep corals on frag racks attached to the walls, as they won't be able to climb up and eat those.

Thank you for the advice! I really appreciate it!

 

[christyj3]

I've never seen them hurt coral. They'll disturb them by walking over them or occasionally picking out algae strands but I've never seen any active eating or damaging. Certainly none of my corals have ever shown signs of being nibbled.

Livestock wise I have those two plus;
- 2 Halloween hermits
- Nassarius and Trochus snails
- 1 Coral banded shrimp
- 2 cleaner shrimp
- 2 Clownfish
- 5 Blue/green Chromis
- 1 Convict Tang
- 1 Foxface Rabbit fish
- 1 Orange spot Goby
- 1 Royal Gramma

Not one has ever been troubled by them (bar the aforementioned snail).

Awesome! Thank you for listing your current livestock for me as well. I was concerned with any livestock that dwells in the bottom of the tank because of the hermits.

 

[TheBear78]

Crabs get a bad name and most Reefers will tell you that they all go bad etc. and can't be trusted.
I've yet to have any issues but it would be a surprise given his behaviour so far. He seems quite content...

 

[christyj3]

Crabs get a bad name and most Reefers will tell you that they all go bad etc. and can't be trusted.
I've yet to have any issues but it would be a surprise given his behaviour so far. He seems quite content...

He looks content, indeed. I appreciate your comment! Very excited to hear that there are others with this same species in their tanks!