HCA: Hermit Crab Association

This isn't something I plan on doing for a very long time (maybe never if the consensus says no), but a dream of mine would be to one day create a huge vivarium that imitates a little slice of a tropical beach. Something with water, and sand and rocks and all the works, pretty much an enormous crabitat.

My question is, is it safe to stock this 'tat with other small animals as well? Obviously I don't want anything that preys on anything else, particularly the crabs. I'm open to any type of animal (mammal, reptile, arthropod, gastropod, fish, ect). My main focus will always be the crabs, so something that might even be beneficial to them in some way would be amazing.

So basically, is there anything suited for living in crabitat conditions that won't eat, or be eaten by, other animals, and if so does anyone have any experience with doing this?

I have a large tank, 225 gallons, and have done some of this. I wouldn't call my experience successful. The long and short of it is I don't recommend it. Just because you can provide the correct humidity, temp, etc. for a creature doesn't mean that it will be comfortable in those conditions with another species. There is pressure on them just from being kept in captivity. In addition, while they would have encountered other creatures in the wild, it doesn't mean that continual, forced, close proximity is a stressor that they will be able to tolerate.

I have included earthworms in mine from time to time. They do not live in the tank long term. I think Ecco Earth is the wrong medium for them.

After a few failures, I kept a frog in our tank for a couple of years. It died when it found it's way into the salt water dish. It was completely my fault. I had changed the tank around and forgot to put the dish in a place that the frog couldn't access.

A lot of folk keep pill bugs with their hermit crabs. I have those. They act as a clean up crew, and provide a little extra interest. Aside from that I've decided to stick to just the hermits.

Hmm not the answer i was hoping for, but you make a good point. I definately would want all the inhabitants to be comfortable and healthy, I guess my dream will have to remain just that.

You're a better person than I am, because I doggedly went ahead and did it after reading that it was a bad idea. I felt pretty bad when I found that poor frog dead.