HCA: Hermit Crab Association

I got some nerite snails in the mail and one turned out to be a crab. I don’t know if hes a marine crab or a land crab. He has dark red legs which made me think he was a land crab but when I put him next to water he crawled in and has be in it over an hour. He’s the size of a large pee so it’s hard to get a good look at him.

Takiaya wrote: ↑

Fri Mar 01, 2024 1:30 pm

I got some nerite snails in the mail and one turned out to be a crab. I don’t know if hes a marine crab or a land crab. He has dark red legs which made me think he was a land crab but when I put him next to water he crawled in and has be in it over an hour. He’s the size of a large pee so it’s hard to get a good look at him.

If he got mixed up with nerites probably marine! Is he in the salt water? Most marine herms are saltwater, and to my knowledge all captive marine are but some are brackish tolerant

Agree that circumstances suggest marine. At that size and color possibly a red leg hermit crab, which are common in the pet trade. Dunno how compatible they are with snails so keep an eye on them if you add it to your aquarium


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He is currently in salt water yes but its not very deep as I wasnt sure if he was marine or land and didnt want him to drown and wanted him to be able to crawl back out if needed. Hes been hiding in the water for the past 7 hours though so Im assuming marine? Should I go ahead and fill the tank up with water? I wasnt sure since he was so small if maybe he was land and just hiding in the water but he wouldnt be able to breathe in the water that long if he was a land crab right?

Land crabs don’t normally stay in saltwater for seven hours straight


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