Help with Shell Sizes

[Adastra1018]

Hi everyone! I've had two PPs for about a year and half now and this is my second time buying shells. I did fine the first time but now I'd like some advice. I ordered some tapestries the first time around last year: a 7/8 inch, three 1 inches, a 1&1/8 and a 1&1/4 Well, now that I'm measuring the shells again, the measurements are a bit off. Both crabs moved into a smaller tapestry when I added them to the tank and then this past june they both came up from a molt and moved into the larger ones.

Long story short, I'd like to get some extra opinions and to what sizes I should get now. Scurvy seems to be a one inch opening. I think Scallywag is in a 1&1/16. I'd double check but he dug down again.

I'm not expecting them to molt for a while and I'm not sure how much they'll grow this time but they do eat a pretty decent amount (I never find buried food) and they're pretty active. I'm looking at magpies and I'm in contact with a shop owner on etsy. I gave her a range and she's getting back to me with specific measurements.

Also, I know it'll be a while before they get to jumbo size, but out of curiosity, what is roughly the biggest size I'd need? I know it's somewhere between 2 and 3 inches but three inches just seems so huge! Unless that's the leg span...

Thanks in advance!

[megmaholm]

I'm by no means an expert on shell sizing so hopefully someone will chime in, BUT! Different shell types will fit differently. I learned that recently with my largest crab. He was in a 1 1/4" opening green turbo, and it was much too small. He switched to a banded tapestry turbo that had the same opening size, but was much roomier inside and a nicer fit. The difference was crazy.

From what I understand, larger crabs like Mexican/striped turbos and tapestry turbos the best, and will wear them as long as possible rather than upgrade to the enormous jade turbos.

Crabs max out at 2" openings, I believe, and it takes years and years to get that size. I don't think you'll need to worry about buying any shells with that size opening for quite a while.

Most of my larger shells that I keep available are tapestry turbos, banded and un-banded. There are green turbos for them to pick through also, but they're super heavy in comparison to the tapestries and no one has touched them.

In my own experience with magpies, I've had crabs of all sizes come home wearing them and they almost always immediately ditch them in favor of something else.

So...I may have been rambling a bit, BUT long story short I highly recommend tapestry turbos in a variety of sizes. They're hard (or maybe impossible) to find in openings bigger than 1.25", and the next biggest shell type is the jade turbo which is hard to find in smaller sizes so is generally WAY too big.

[Adastra1018]

Thanks!

I have read on here that it's hard to find larger tapestries which is why I thought I'd try another species. Plus I'm in love with magpies. I know they're heavy and not preferred but I'd get banded ones, and Scurvy wore a goldmouth and some turban variety one for a long time. He actually went back to the gold mouth over the tapestry for awhile and he's tried it on a lot the past year which had me wondering if he'd like a magpie. The one inch shell he's in now looks the same overall size as the larger ones, and the 7/8 looks the same overall size as the other two one inches. So it's hard to judge.

[singlemomwithcrab]

Adastra1018 - if you get in the habit of checking the shell sellers listed in the "Shopping Resources" link on the home page, You should be able to find some larger tapestries. I've had luck numerous times. I tried looking for you but one of the major servers must be down because, even using two different browsers, the pages wouldn't load.

If you look at a previous post I did, I got some really nice spotted tapestries in graduates sizes...

http://hermitcrabassociation.com/phpBB/ ... 4&t=101744

[Adastra1018]

I'm assuming tapestries are the roomiest? I'm sure I'll end up getting more but I'd still like some variety. Anyway, I guess assuming I get more tapestries, what size opening should I even get? Is it worth getting 1&1/8 or should go a bit bigger? The tapestries they're in now fit really well and they only recently moved into those sizes. Especially if they're so roomy that the crabs are hard pressed to give them up, I'm expecting they wont switch until the shells have really gotten too small for them. Though I know PP switch a lot for fun and mine do it all the time. Scurvy briefly wore that goldmouth I mentioned before just yesterday. My roomie joked all the time about them having identity crises.

[singlemomwithcrab]

The thought process is that the crabs go up by 1/8 inches. But like any good child with a growth spurt, that usually isn't reliable. I would go with a range.

The thought process is also that each different shell has different interior space with tapestries and jade turbo's having more than silver or gold mouthed green turbo's. My PP really love the tapestries and I have plain one's, grooved ones and spotted ones. I would ask for the sizes of 1" - 1 1/2" and get at least 12.

There is also a shell swapping club post under Shells Forum. It looks like they are going to start a new box as soon as enough names are accumulated. Might want to get in on that...

[Adastra1018]

Ok. That's basically what I did last time but then when I was getting different measurements on the same shells I was second guessing myself. They should be good for quite a while based on what I already have but I'll get more to give them choices. Thanks for the help, I appreciate it!