HCA: Hermit Crab Association

So our Gru decided to molt right under the water dish. The other crabs dug a tunnel and his shell appeared empty. Now one crab is trying to pull his shell up out of the hole. I dont know if he's alive but I know when he's done molting he wont have his shell. I know you never dig up a crab. So should I just leave him alone and hopefully he'll find his way to a shell?

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A crab who is done molting WILL have his shell and will come back up in it. They don't leave their shells unless something is wrong.
How much substrate and what type do you have?
Do you have any other crabs down right now?

So there are 6 crabs 3 are down 2 that are up are E's and one PP. The substrate is about 8inch. It used to be about 11 in front of the tank He didnt bury himself very deep. So if they found his shell and he was molting would he have gone to his shell if he knew they were coming. One of the other crabs I haven't seen since before july 4 and he was my smallest one. The one missing from his shell was my biggest one.

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They do not leave their shell when they molt - they make a little cave in the substrate (that's why it's important to be sand castle consistency) and stay there until they have molted, eaten their exo, and hardened up the new exo. If another crab came across him while he was molting and still soft and vulnerable, they might have eaten him. If a crab has the shell and the crab isn't in it, I'm afraid it doesn't sound good. If you have other crabs down, you can't really dig around too much to see if his body is there. How big is your tank? The only time one of my crabs dug up another was when I didn't have enough substrate. Do your crabs have protein and calcium daily?

It's a 55gal and yeah they always have access to protien and calcium. The spot where he chose to molt is more shallow than the rest of the tank. And since it's right under the water tank there is too much water in the sand right there and also mold from the access water and food that gets buried all the time. I've been waiting for my other guys to come up to fix the tank. But I feel like I may just have to try to fix it and hope for the best.

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Reasons for making a cave right under the water source:

1) it is the most humid spot--this may indicate you need to work on the humidity in your tank, in general
2) the water dish helps to compact the substrate and allow for the best stability to make a "cave"--this may indicate that you need to work on the consistency of your substrate, throughout

What kind of substrate do you have, and do you have temp/humidity gauges in several different places in your tank?

DragonsFly wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 11, 2019 7:14 am

Reasons for making a cave right under the water source:

1) it is the most humid spot--this may indicate you need to work on the humidity in your tank, in general
2) the water dish helps to compact the substrate and allow for the best stability to make a "cave"

Sorry to jump on this, but should substrate be more "packed" than loose? I've wondered about that.

Its sand and EE 5 to 1 mix but also is way too wet by the water dishes. And yes I have 2 humidity gauges one up high by the water and the other one the other side of the tank. Its says from the 70s to high 80s. So should I did him up since I need to fix the substrate by the water anyways

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SylysJ wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 11, 2019 8:47 am

Its sand and EE 5 to 1 mix but also is way too wet by the water dishes. And yes I have 2 humidity gauges one up high by the water and the other one the other side of the tank. Its says from the 70s to high 80s. So should I did him up since I need to fix the substrate by the water anyways

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If you have EE on hand maybe you can put some in dry and it will soak up the water. Otherwise if it's pooling, you will have to gently dig them up. But if they are molting you will have to iso them each.

MauiMama wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 11, 2019 7:47 am

Sorry to jump on this, but should substrate be more "packed" than loose? I've wondered about that.

I don't try to pack it, it generally settles on its own, and they turn it up while digging, then it settles again. If you have just play sand, or a mix of play sand and EE, at a good consistency/moisture level, it should not be too "fluffy."

Thank you!

So update my other PP kevin went down the tunnel and back filled it. Gru's big shell is still on the surface and my E Dr. Nafario is looking for kevin. So its probably not good news.

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Kevin may need to molt; make sure you keep good sources of protein and chitin (shrimp is great; bloodworms are a favorite) readily available for Fr. Nafario to minimize his wish to cannibalize Kevin.

Note: some people have kept PP's and E's together just fine; others have found that it is best to separate them, so that is something to consider as you continue to learn and decide what is best for them.

I meant my E dr nafario was looking for gru too. They both are. Kevin came out from the other side of the water dish so there is a tunnel down there. I have cuttle bone and shrimp and egg shells. Fresh fruit and calcium mix with oyster shells and kelp powder. There is alot of black and green mold in the tank from all the food being buried. I'm planning on cleaning the tank this weekend. Adding a bunch more substrate to fix the pooling hopefully I dont come across my other 2 crabs that are down. One has been down 3 months. If I do I have 2 iso tanks

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