HCA: Hermit Crab Association

We had a crab come up this morning after being buried 41 days. I was assuming from molting but not sure because he looks about the same. We noticed this afternoon he has been hiding in his hut all day and has done a lot of digging. He hasn't gone underground but is behind a big pile of dirt. Does this mean anything? Going to monitor to see if he goes back underground but just wondering if this is normal.

Hi!

New crabs will often bury themselves to destress or molt. Sometimes, you will get crabs that like to spend most of their lives underground for one reason or another, who knows? Maybe they just like to play "Batman" and be in a secret lair.

It is possible for crabs to molt "back to back". They may be trying to repair an injury or grow faster. It's been said that in the wild they grow as quickly as they can to avoid being eaten by other creatures.

You will be able to tell if your crab has recently molted by their shiny eyes, hairy hairy legs, and sharp pointy black claw tips.

Sounds completely normal to me. It's exactly what a few of my crabs did.


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soilentgringa wrote:Hi!

New crabs will often bury themselves to destress or molt. Sometimes, you will get crabs that like to spend most of their lives underground for one reason or another, who knows? Maybe they just like to play "Batman" and be in a secret lair.

It is possible for crabs to molt "back to back". They may be trying to repair an injury or grow faster. It's been said that in the wild they grow as quickly as they can to avoid being eaten by other creatures.

You will be able to tell if your crab has recently molted by their shiny eyes, hairy hairy legs, and sharp pointy black claw tips.

He's not a new crab. We've had him over a year. But we did get a new tank in mid April and then he went down days later. So maybe he was just adjusting to the new tank? I had assumed he went down for a molt but now we are having 2nd thoughts because he isn't showing the post molt signs.

Thejohnay wrote:

soilentgringa wrote:Hi!

New crabs will often bury themselves to destress or molt. Sometimes, you will get crabs that like to spend most of their lives underground for one reason or another, who knows? Maybe they just like to play "Batman" and be in a secret lair.

It is possible for crabs to molt "back to back". They may be trying to repair an injury or grow faster. It's been said that in the wild they grow as quickly as they can to avoid being eaten by other creatures.

You will be able to tell if your crab has recently molted by their shiny eyes, hairy hairy legs, and sharp pointy black claw tips.

He's not a new crab. We've had him over a year. But we did get a new tank in mid April and then he went down days later. So maybe he was just adjusting to the new tank? I had assumed he went down for a molt but now we are having 2nd thoughts because he isn't showing the post molt signs.

Oh. He probably just felt like digging then!

Update. Got a great look at him today and he did molt. I noticed the black claws and some hair. He is still digging and hiding. Maybe still feels vulnerable.

Thejohnay wrote:Update. Got a great look at him today and he did molt. I noticed the black claws and some hair. He is still digging and hiding. Maybe still feels vulnerable.

I had one come up from a molt after 5 weeks and he kinda did the same thing as you are describing. I think he still needed time to get his bones hard. When he first came up I could see he was really pinkish purple and now he is dark purple and up getting into trouble every night.


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