HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Hi, I am new to this site. I own 6 PP in a 40 gallon tank. I started my love for hermies pretty recently. Someone had gotten my son two for his birthday and i began doing research. Since then, I have upgraded their crabitat completely and tried to higher the living standards. I also was able to adopt 4 from a friend. My crabs have been with me for a little over 4 months now. I believe that they all are just now finally molting, since i have not seen sight but of one, my biggest baby who comes out everytime i leave a new treat. I know molting can take quite some time and they all range from medium to large in size. It has been close to two months now with no sign of any of them emerging. I'm beginning to get worried that maybe they are dead.
My crabitat contains 6 inches of Coconut Fiber Substrate, 3 handmade tunnels, a coconut hut, a climbing wall, aquarium safe plants, two pools of fresh water and saltwater. Their diet is pretty natural and i stay clear of commercial food. Normally i feed them fruits, veggies, shrimp, crickets, nuts, oystershell, sunflower seeds, and various unseasoned fresh meats. I have two heating mats on the side of the tank, along with a regular desk lamp that provides some additional heat. There is no bad smell coming from the tank and i spot clean and water change daily. I am just beginning to get worried. Should i investigate or change anything? Or continue to wait it out? Thank you!

Hi there! And welcome to crabbing!

It sounds like you are giving them a very good life! Crabs can molt/destress for weeks at a time, so I wouldn't get too worried yet. When I rescued my Petunia, she was small/medium, and went under for 7 weeks. Also, they may be coming up at night when you are sleeping.

Digging for a crab should only be done in an emergency, like a flood or bacterial bloom. If any of the crabs happened to have dug down and passed on, there's nothing you could do anyway. I rescued 4 crabs back in May, and I'm pretty sure one of them didn't make it. But since I have 6 other crabs in with him, I can't go looking for him, I've just assumed he might have passed (a couple of my crabs look similar, that's why I'm not 100% sure he passed).
Just keep doing what your doing and I'll keep my fingers crossed that they all are well!

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I agree with CL77, they can stay down for months, or just pop up for a few hours then go back down. Two months isn't long at all, just be patient.