HCA: Hermit Crab Association

BACK STORY :My best friend got us both some hermit crabs from the beach shop, which I wasn’t too pleased with, for our birthdays. I had them before as a small child but they died quick. He gave me one (he got three), in a 3 gallon carrier. A few rocks, food, a sponge, and only fresh water. I was appalled lol. They had to sit in the shade outside at my party for hours and I thought they would surely die. I was in no condition to care for them but long story short I got mine a ten gallon, a hermie friend, some hides, salt water, fresh water, and about 3 and a half inches of sub. Still very uneducated. Had them on a decent diet though (fresh veggies,calcium, and proteins). The original one sadly passed while on vacation (I had family take care of him, but it wasn’t done right) so I got another (after searching unsuccessfully in my area to adopt). GET THIS my best friend gets sick of his and gives me his two crabs plus a newbie he got (with a painted shell, ugh) in the months he had them, he used calci sand, no salt water, no way to keep in humidity, kept them in the closet, fed them pellets, and never misted. So I now had five crabs and desperately needed something bigger. I just recently (this week) bought a 20 gallon long (30.5x14x12), a heating mat(20x10) a bubbler, bigger pools, and some more shells. My crabs are instantly more active/way happier) I just couldn’t afford the supplies at the time (I’m 15). I’m so thrilled they are doing good though. (Sand Substrate 3-5 inches, humidity 88, temp 72)

NOW FOR THE QUESTIONS. One of the hermit crabs my friend gave me instantly buried himself and I knew he was molting. He was under there for a few days shy of 4 MONTHS. I thought he was surely dead, and there was some odor(again I was a newbie, odor is fixed) so I thought he was dead. I was super scared of digging him up during a molt, but after 2 months I went for a look in the substrate and he was nowhere to be seen. I think the crabs are very interesting and watch them frequently, but I never once saw him. I’m a night owl so we are basically on the same sleeping schedule. When I switched to my new tank yesterday, I dug and dug in the substrate after moving everything out and finally found him... ALIVE! He had really vibrant colors and moved when I picked him up. I placed him in the new setup and within the hour he was the one moving the most to explore.

Thoughts and why he was down there for so long or how he survived? I have not seen him once since I got him, and I check on the crabs multiple times a day.

He’s perfectly fine I think. He is also a smaller crab (quarter size) so his molting process shouldn’t have passed 8 weeks long I believe.

My larger crab is taking a dip in his saltwater pool, lol. That’s a first.

Next thing: I have nothing to cover the top of the cage after desperately looking so I’m using the cardboard casing the tank came in wrapped in plastic wrap. This is obviously not a permanent solution so does anyone have some cost friendly solutions that might be more permanent?

Another: what humidity percentage causes mold or bacteria? My bubblers are causing the humidity to sky rocket.

I’m new to this forum, this is my first day even looking at it, and I’m learning a lot. Feel free to drop any suggestions though! I am aware that the tank is too small for the amount of crabs but I have 4 hides and many of them are small. When I have the funds and when they are bigger will upgrade. Until then I will be searching Craigslist like a crazy.

Hermit crabs will go up and down to their pleasure, but some seem to just live down there. It’s entirely possible for him to come back up and rebury without you noticing.

As for humidity, bacteria are unavoidable but mold growth tends to accelerate once you go above eighty percent humidity.


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Welcome to crabbing!
Like Joe said, crabs come up and go down without us noticing sometimes. One of mine was literally above ground for 2 hours one evening. If I hadn't happened to have been in the room during that time, I would have thought she was underground for 5 and a half months! Two months really isn't long at all, and since we never know if they are molting or just chilling under there, it is not recommended to dig them up unless there is an emergency (ie- bacterial bloom or flood). If a crab is dead under the sub, there is nothing we can do. But if they are at a critical point in their molting, digging them up can have serious (sometimes fatal) consequences.
I used plastic wrap on the top of my first two tanks, because they didn't have lids. My current tank (55 gallon) has a plexi glass lid. Depending on the size of your tank, there are glass lids available. The most cost effective is just continuing with the plastic wrap.
My humidity is often over 90%, sometimes over 95%. I do get mold sometimes, but just clean it off. Just be careful that your bubblers aren't spilling water that could cause a flood.