HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Can crabs eat any or all of buttercup flowers. They are basically a weed.

Buttercups are on the Unsafe food list.

They are safe when dried, though.

Jedediah wrote:They are safe when dried, though.

Interesting. Do you know what makes them unsafe for hermit crabs otherwise? Or were they simply added to the unsafe list because they are known to be toxic to other animals?

My brother and I used to eat buttercups all the time, I don't see why they would be unsafe.

Mike120 wrote:My brother and I used to eat buttercups all the time, I don't see why they would be unsafe.

I just know they are considered toxic to horses. I'm not sure about other animals.

I think that they were added to the list because of their toxicity to other animals/mammals. I'm not sure if the protoanemonin that makes them toxic would harm the crabs, but I think it might affect their mouthparts and their digestive tract.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protoanemonin

Mike120, the most common buttercup species http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ranunculus_repens contains only very little protoanemonin (0,01 %) and that is probably what you have eaten and only the flowers, I assume. Other species are much more toxic. I can tell you from my own experiences with eating Lesser Celandine (after it had bloomed, which is when the protoanemonin developes in this flower...don't try at home) that you would absolutely notice the effect it has. I had blisters on the roof of my mouth, just from a few flowers.

Okay, thanks Jed, everything makes more sense now. I was getting a little worried.