HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Hi guys, I have 7 Aussies and I was wondering what sorts of shells they favour. I plan on getting them on eBay and would like to know some different types they do like. I know one of mine is in a natural turbo which apparently is pretty odd for Aussies. Any suggestions?


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Hi I have 4 Aussie crabs, and mine prefer natural turbo styled shells too - it is pretty odd for Aussies to be interested in turbo shells! From What I’ve read and heard, Aussie crabs typically prefer the land snail style shells - at the pet stores I usually see Aussie crabs in these shells, and a couple of mine are in shells like this currently:


Also, they do prefer these style shells as well (Babylonia areolata) :


Hope this helps - happy shell shopping


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Keep in mind that the shells they come in may not be the shells they end up liking the most. The ones we buy for them that are the most popular are almost always foreign species that they would never encounter in the wild. Most turbos are native to Indonesia and India, and they are so easily available mainly because they are popular as food and the snails are farmed, and the shells are a secondary source of income. I can't speak for Aussies, but for PPs their favorite shells are ones from an entirely different ocean! They turn their antenna up at native shells once they get a taste of the exotics.

Ok thank you guys, two of my crabs are in whales eye shells (I think that's what they are called). I will try to stock up on a variety of different types and see what they prefer. I'm trying to coax a couple into changing because they are just too big for the one they are in but they seem happy. One of my crabs changed shells 5 times in one day which I thought was a bit odd but she must not have been comfortable.

Sorry for the late replys and thanks again


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That’s alright! Glad to hear that your crabs are happy swapping shells - it’s alright if your crab changed shells 5 times in one day, I have one in particular that spends all day changing shells and guarding them haha!


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