HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Has anyone seen a crab climb the silicone sealant in the corner of the tank? My son just found one of his crabs clinging to the screen top. It is a mystery how it got up there. I am concerned because it was directly above one of the pools. The sealant is my only guess. ??

They can climb the silicone, so thats why we encourage crabbers to to have a tight fitting lid. Dont worry about it, they work out how to get down, whether its dropping or climbing down.

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Lol, where theres a will, theres a way. Mine have done this, its completely normal. They're silly lil climbers and will find mischief EVERYWHERE lol. Id say theres no cause for concern over the pools, they have a good grip and are fairly strong. Mine on the other hand... lol... i have 1 very skittish crab straight from purchase, who, no matter where she is will run away at the first sight of me. This includes climbing on anything and hanging like a chandelier and then just let go, drop, and run away. I eliminated the hanging but getting a new lid.

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There have been pictures posted over the years of crabs climbing the silicone in the corners! It's kind of incredible how they can lift themselves with so little purchase!

OMG, crazy crabs! Have a screen top. Are they strong enough to lift the lid to escape?? We are new to crabs and continue to learn thanks to you all. These 2 PPs came from a FL beach store and then I scrambled to make a healthy home for them. They immediately went under- one for about 4 wks the other for about 6 wks. I am sure one of them molted as he came up much bigger, the other one looks the same size so I don't know if he molted or not. But they are both very active since coming up so I think they are doing good. So thankful to have a group to get information and get quick answers.

SLKleem wrote:OMG, crazy crabs! Have a screen top. Are they strong enough to lift the lid to escape?? We are new to crabs and continue to learn thanks to you all. These 2 PPs came from a FL beach store and then I scrambled to make a healthy home for them. They immediately went under- one for about 4 wks the other for about 6 wks. I am sure one of them molted as he came up much bigger, the other one looks the same size so I don't know if he molted or not. But they are both very active since coming up so I think they are doing good. So thankful to have a group to get information and get quick answers.

If the lid clamps or latches at all, it's good. Otherwise I highly suggest using clamps, velcro, or setting something heavy on top.

You can tell if they molted by new black tips on their legs and fresh hair on their legs.

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There have been cases where they popped the lid and got out. It's not super common, but it can happen. Lid clips are under $3 and will keep them in. They're easy to use so you can get in and out without a fuss. Just make sure you're buying the right size and try to match the brand of clip to the brand of lid for a better fit.

My crabs love to crawl on the screen half of my top. My kids and I call it playing "spider crab" you can put a heavy book or two like dictionaries size on top till u can get the clippy things.

Here is my Harry playing spider crab

https://plus.google.com/photos/11303410 ... t66r37C2bA

Here's a recent pic of my crab climbing the silicone sealant!

I think they spend most of the evening trying to figure out a way to escape the tank!




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