Oliver The Coconut Crab
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Topic author - Posts: 4
- Joined: Fri Nov 25, 2022 8:38 am
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Oliver The Coconut Crab
Hey everyone!
I’ve been a long time lurker on the forums, but this is my first post. I’d like to introduce you all to the newest love of my life; Oliver, my baby coconut crab! He arrived 48 hours ago with a weight of just 25 grams.
His current enclosure specs:
120 gallon aquarium with dimensions of 48”x24”x24”,
~10” of substrate (3 fifty pound bags of playsand, 48 quarts of eco earth, 30 pounds of organic potting soil (without pearlite) wetted down to proper moisture with MSW)
Various types and thicknesses of logs/branches (local and exotic)
Mixed species hardwood leaf litter (local and exotic)
6 quart freshwater and MSW pools with sponge filters
Humidity range of 83-90 percent
Temperature of 83-86
With the exception of substrate composition and enclosure size, he is essentially receiving what would be required by the “exotic” hermits (straws, blues, indo’s etc.).
I’m not sure if this is the right place, but I was wanting to create a sort of “diary” of his progression. There’s such a limited amount of information on the keeping of this species in captivity, I’m trying to add as much as possible to the collective knowledge base.
I’ll be tracking and taking notes every step of the way. If anyone has any ideas on additional observational note taking/things I should be tracking that could prove useful, I’d love to hear them! I’ll be setting up a webcam in short order, so I’ll be able to make nightly observations.
Pardon the poor photo quality. I snapped a couple pics during his initial weigh in immediately upon arrival, and I wanted to keep stress to a minimum.
I’ve been a long time lurker on the forums, but this is my first post. I’d like to introduce you all to the newest love of my life; Oliver, my baby coconut crab! He arrived 48 hours ago with a weight of just 25 grams.
His current enclosure specs:
120 gallon aquarium with dimensions of 48”x24”x24”,
~10” of substrate (3 fifty pound bags of playsand, 48 quarts of eco earth, 30 pounds of organic potting soil (without pearlite) wetted down to proper moisture with MSW)
Various types and thicknesses of logs/branches (local and exotic)
Mixed species hardwood leaf litter (local and exotic)
6 quart freshwater and MSW pools with sponge filters
Humidity range of 83-90 percent
Temperature of 83-86
With the exception of substrate composition and enclosure size, he is essentially receiving what would be required by the “exotic” hermits (straws, blues, indo’s etc.).
I’m not sure if this is the right place, but I was wanting to create a sort of “diary” of his progression. There’s such a limited amount of information on the keeping of this species in captivity, I’m trying to add as much as possible to the collective knowledge base.
I’ll be tracking and taking notes every step of the way. If anyone has any ideas on additional observational note taking/things I should be tracking that could prove useful, I’d love to hear them! I’ll be setting up a webcam in short order, so I’ll be able to make nightly observations.
Pardon the poor photo quality. I snapped a couple pics during his initial weigh in immediately upon arrival, and I wanted to keep stress to a minimum.
Last edited by Birguslatro on Wed Jun 26, 2024 9:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Oliver The Coconut Crab
I hope it goes well! Thanks for sharing.
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Re: Oliver The Coconut Crab
I haven’t seen many keepers try coconut crabs outside of Asia. I don’t know how well they do in captivity but I hope you have a plan for when it gets bigger
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Topic author - Posts: 4
- Joined: Fri Nov 25, 2022 8:38 am
- Location: WA
Re: Oliver The Coconut Crab
Thank you! I’ll be posting updates regularly.
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Topic author - Posts: 4
- Joined: Fri Nov 25, 2022 8:38 am
- Location: WA
Re: Oliver The Coconut Crab
You’re absolutely right. There aren’t many keepers far from their native range. They don’t get exported very often, and when they do, the people who buy them seem to purchase them as more of a novelty than as an actual pet. Much like hermit crabs, they end up receiving improper care, and perish in short order.JoeHermits wrote:I haven’t seen many keepers try coconut crabs outside of Asia. I don’t know how well they do in captivity but I hope you have a plan for when it gets bigger
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Thankfully with Oliver being so small, he should be able to live comfortably in his current enclosure for several years. I’m expecting him to molt maybe 2-3 times a year at his current size, but again, there’s really no literature to back this assumption, so it’s all going to have to be observational note taking on my end.
That being said, when he inevitably outgrows his 120, he’ll be getting quite a large upgrade. Custom Reptile Habitats offers a PVC enclosure measuring 8’x4’x6’, which I believe (with a few modifications) would be an excellent next enclosure.
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Re: Oliver The Coconut Crab
Nice. The San Diego Zoo had theirs in an enclosure of similar size for less than a year before transferring to a larger enclosure, but I think their crab was also a little bigger
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Topic author - Posts: 4
- Joined: Fri Nov 25, 2022 8:38 am
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Re: Oliver The Coconut Crab
Oh yes, their crab Kenny was about 50 times larger when they acquired him in 2014. He was about 1,200 grams compared to Oliver’s 25 grams!JoeHermits wrote:Nice. The San Diego Zoo had theirs in an enclosure of similar size for less than a year before transferring to a larger enclosure, but I think their crab was also a little bigger
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I actually went to see him at the San Diego zoo last January, but he was unfortunately down for a molt. I wasn’t able to see him, but was able to see how they have designed his enclosure.
Either way, it’ll likely be years and years until little Ollie is the size Kenny was back in 14’. I’m guessing I’ll be able to get ~3 years out of the current enclosure, and likely twice that out of his next upgrade. However, I’m not on any kind of time crunch. If he ends up outgrowing his 120 by the end of the year, he’ll be getting an upgrade!
Here is dinner for night #5 (all organic/wild collected)
Raw wild shrimp
Red bell pepper
Fuji apple
Puffed buckwheat
Assorted dried wildflower blend
Pre-made hermit blend (just2oldcrabs mix)
Snake shed (captive specimen)