HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Hello went to pet store today to get some supplies and what do ya know had to walk over by the hermies and take a look and guess what bought two I took a few out looked them over and remembered what I read in some HCA forums about E's so I got two of them very active little critters but one thing that bothers me they are white in color is this normal ...here are the pic I put them in this lol cage for a few until I set the tank up with fresh salt and reg water and fresh food

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Hello! The one on the right is not an E, that's a PP.
Here, we recommend ten gallons per E, at least 10" - 12" of substrate, and two calcium and protein choices at all times

The one forum I read I cnt remember wich one it was racking my brains here that the E have long flat EYES as well like the pp has long tubular round eyes

piratetoothgir wrote:Hello! The one on the right is not an E, that's a PP.
Here, we recommend ten gallons per E, at least 10" - 12" of substrate, and two calcium and protein choices at all times

Here is a better pic of the white one I just put in tank

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Tazz9040 wrote:

piratetoothgir wrote:Hello! The one on the right is not an E, that's a PP.
Here, we recommend ten gallons per E, at least 10" - 12" of substrate, and two calcium and protein choices at all times

Here is a better pic of the white one I just put in tank

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That’s an E, the other one is a PP.


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piratetoothgir wrote:

Tazz9040 wrote:

piratetoothgir wrote:Hello! The one on the right is not an E, that's a PP.
Here, we recommend ten gallons per E, at least 10" - 12" of substrate, and two calcium and protein choices at all times

Here is a better pic of the white one I just put in tank

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That’s an E, the other one is a PP.


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I can tell ya one thing the E is a wild crab and I think a lol aggressive I think ??

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Sadly, all crabs bought from a store are wild caught.
Yes, Es need protein or else they will become aggressive against other crabs due to a lack of proper nutrition, leading to cannibalism


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I put some tuna greens n corn in food bowl what else recommend for protein meal worms n such ???

Tazz9040 wrote:I put some tuna greens n corn in food bowl what else recommend for protein meal worms n such ???

Worms, chicken, beef... raw or cooked. Eggs. Crickets.

Hello! It is normal for E's to be more natural colors. They tend to be white, tan, or brown. They also need a lot of room in comparison to other crabs. How many crabs do you have and how big is your tank?

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Well right now I have 3 pp 1 E in a 10 gallon tank I do have a 20 gallon I'm setting up with send lol in it with plenty of climbing

That would sadly still be too small. Purple pinchers need at least 5 gallons per crab, but Ecuadorians need 10 gallons per crab. E's enjoy digging more than PP's and if they come across a molting crab underground they will eat them, which is why more space is recommended for them.

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piratetoothgir wrote:Hello! The one on the right is not an E, that's a PP.
Here, we recommend ten gallons per E, at least 10" - 12" of substrate, and two calcium and protein choices at all times

Just so you know...some of that is what I recommend, not the HCA.

It is my opinion that Es do much better with two protein choices a day.

All crabs need calcium at all times. I personally give my crabs several choices for calcium.

Ecuadorian crabs do not do well with overcrowding. Purple pinchers can tolerate it more than the Es do.

Congratulations on your new crabs. Es are very active, and love to dig, so definitely get your substrate level up to 10-12". You could also consider adding a modified hamster wheel to your tank. That will help. I personally like the Kaytee Silent Spinner wheels.

GotButterflies wrote:Just so you know...some of that is what I recommend, not the HCA.

It is my opinion that Es do much better with two protein choices a day.

All crabs need calcium at all times. I personally give my crabs several choices for calcium.

Ecuadorian crabs do not do well with overcrowding. Purple pinchers can tolerate it more than the Es do.

Congratulations on your new crabs. Es are very active, and love to dig, so definitely get your substrate level up to 10-12". You could also consider adding a modified hamster wheel to your tank. That will help. I personally like the Kaytee Silent Spinner wheels.

Yep, and I give my E's two choices of protein and calcium per day as well

Our E absolutely loves to go on the hampster wheel too. He will run on that for hours at a time! Our Eddie also loves hiding in the mosh, I mean moss pit! Each crab does their own thing but ours enjoy the wheel and the pit.