HCA: Hermit Crab Association

I've been reading through forums on here and I noticed people mentioning pets like shrimp and some gecko species are inbred. Then I started thinking about how this could happen with captive-bred crabs if we're not careful. Especially since we have so few people who have successfully bred them, it's really important that second generation and so on breedings don't happen between "siblings," or at least not too often. This could reduce genetic diversity and all that jazz and make hermit crabs vulnerable to the same things. I'm not saying this will happen, and I'm not blaming any of the amazingly dedicated people who put so much work into raising them. I just think as a community going forward as (hopefully) more and more people are able to breed hermit crabs we should try to avoid this. And I'm sure this is plausible to avoid, since there are wild-caught crabs likely from countless different beaches. But this is so, so crucial that we avoid inbreeding. I'm no expert in breeding them by a long shot, so I'd love thoughts on reasonable solutions. I'm wondering if keeping track of "litters" (idk the word to use for hermies ) and breeding second generation crabs from different crabs is feasible. Or maybe it's what people are already doing, and if so, fantastic. I just got really worried thinking about this hehe

Yup. Can't speak for others but it's definitely on my radar. It's one of the reasons I share info and am working hard to help those who have a viable shot at breeding get some to land, too.

Worst case, I isolate females from the captive breeding program and introduce them to a new/different male than the one that sired them.

Alright, sweet, that's a huge relief that at least one (probably more) person is aware of. I wish you the best of luck with your endeavors. Maybe eventually if there's ever enough breeders there should be some topic relating to looking for second generation sires and such. Also, I didn't think about just breeding them with wild-caught crabs. It's obviously not ideal but better than nothing. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

In recent years more and more people are seeing hermits with eggs and attempting breeding. With good open communication between everyone with what works and doesn't with breeding more and more people will start having success!

With more and more people seeing eggs, mating, and zoea it is safe to say that our care techniques and standards are making a difference. I feel there is always room to improve current techniques and practices. We would all still be riding around on steam powered trains if someone didn't try to do it better!

Motörcrab wrote: ↑

Wed Feb 12, 2020 4:42 pm

In recent years more and more people are seeing hermits with eggs and attempting breeding. With good open communication between everyone with what works and doesn't with breeding more and more people will start having success!

With more and more people seeing eggs, mating, and zoea it is safe to say that our care techniques and standards are making a difference. I feel there is always room to improve current techniques and practices. We would all still be riding around on steam powered trains if someone didn't try to do it better!

Definitely.