Life Expectancy??

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sun Sep 03, 2006 7:19 pm

I was asked this question and with all the reading I've done, I have yet to see this question answered. I know it is effected by how well the owner takes care of their crabs. But assuming they have all the specs right, how long do they normally live?

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sun Sep 03, 2006 7:33 pm

I have read that they usually live 5 years or so in captivity, but some have had them live for 20+ years!

I think in the wild they sometimes live to be 50?

Hermit_of_Hermit_Crabs · Post by **Hermit_of_Hermit_Crabs** » Sun Sep 03, 2006 7:47 pm

I believe the longest living hermit crabs in captivity have been about 30 years old. However, experts say they can live 50 years or perhaps longer in the wild.

starmaiden · Post by **starmaiden** » Sun Sep 03, 2006 8:12 pm

However, experts say they can live 50 years or perhaps longer in the wild.

I heard that too, but read somewhere that info is antidotal and has yet to be actually proven. Except for the coconut crab, all land hermit crabs need shells to continue growing. A jumbo crab is 20-30 years old and shells any bigger get really hard to come by in the wild. Hehe, they are hard to come by i.e. expensive in captivity too! So I don't think that a noticable percentage of hermit crabs in the wild, once hatched, make it to 20, much less 50!

I read somewhere they can breed when they are 'smalls' so they don't need to reach great size in the wild for their life cycle to be complete. I think the 5 years in captivity is also taking into account owners that don't have good conditions...the ones that don't monitor heat and humidity, provide salt water, feed commercial food only etc...I kept a hermit crab like this when I was a kid not knowing any better and it lived for 4 years!

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sun Sep 03, 2006 10:11 pm

starmaiden, you must have lived in a humid enviroment. I know there are HCA members who have had HCs for five years, but I'm not sure there is anypone here whose kept them alive any longer than that.

If I am mistaken, will anyone who's had a crab or more longer than five years please 'stand up'?

starmaiden · Post by **starmaiden** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 12:25 am

I think Pumakitties wrote that she kept hers for 8 years until she got married and gave them away. I also know of someone who has kept their first crabs for 6 and still counting. And of course, Carol of Crabworks 30 years with her first and only two hermit crabs...and still going strong!

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 12:37 am

8 years that's awesome, and if I remember correctly Carol lives in florida, so she can probably provide them with much of the same things they would get in the wild.

I just feel that to say that those who have improper conditions are the ones that have crabs that live less then 5 years would not be a totally accurate statement.

Before I gave up crabbing (and obviously have started up again going way beyond the level I used to be at as far as number of crabs, species and tanks) I had 4 crabs that lived at the longest almost two years. I'd had multiple PPS loses during that time also. I had almost identical conditions to what I have now the only change being I serve all fresh organic foods.

Most of those people who have had crabs 6 or 8 years only have may be one or two that old, and the rest pasted away before the 6 year mark, that does not mean that anything was wrong with their crabbing method. I think to say those who have improper conditions will have crabs die before the 5 year mark would set up alot of very good crabbers to feel very bad about their abilities.

starmaiden · Post by **starmaiden** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 12:48 am

I think Carol lived in Virginia until 2005 when she moved to a retirement community in Florida.

I didn't mean to imply that crabbers who have deaths of crabs less than 5 years in their care were bad crabbers, I just meant to say that the 5 year average probably does not take into account people with good conditions. I know I've had a few losses already and I've been crabbing again for less than a year!

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 1:24 am

I see.

But that is what I mean, you are a good crabber with good conditions, and one doesn't have to be crabbing for a long time nessesarily to be a good crabber, nor to losses nessesarily mean one is a bad crabber.

However I still think that does take into account people with good conditions. To say that it doesn't take into account people with good conditions means to me that if it did, it would be longer than 5 years, and more like to 6-8, heck, 20 years. I wish it was that simple. I would think that among those with good conditions the percentage of crabs that live more than 5 years would be fairly low. Of course I have no way of knowing that for sure.

The only way to really know is if we could take a survey of crabbers who have identical conditions, and have been crabbing 5 years or more, who have kept detailed records, and ask of their current population, what % of your crabs have lived 5 years or more, what % have lived 4 years, and so on. I can't help but feel that most would be lower then 5 years, but that it's a realistic average for anyone to shoot for.

I feel that happiness is related to our expectation, and if things meet or exceed our expectation we are happy, if things fall below our expectation no matter what the result is we are unhappy. I just think when a new crabber asks how long should a HC live in captivity they should have a realistic expectation, espeically when the question was asked in the context of "with all the specs right".

Hermit_of_Hermit_Crabs · Post by **Hermit_of_Hermit_Crabs** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 3:36 pm

Crabber, have you talked to Christa yet? She has been crabbing for about 30 years I think. Ask her how old her oldest hermie is or was.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 3:44 pm

To really get telling and convincing data, there would have to a fairly large pool of crabbers contributing to a study, otherwise it could be a "fluke", or luck.....

starmaiden · Post by **starmaiden** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 4:02 pm

I think Salemwitchchild, the best way to answer your question is: Well, the average is 5 years, but some have been known to live for 30 years in captivity.

It's like goldfish. They can live for 15 years supposedly, but how many actually make it to that age?

IMHO, I still think a hermit crab's lifespan in captivity with a good crabber, once they are past the harvesting and PPS stage of course, would be better than in the wild with the high risk of preditors, competition for food and shells and so forth. Especially the more hardy species like purple pinchers and Es. We still don't know much about what diseases affect them and what sometimes makes molts turn out badly.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 4:22 pm

Thank you to all of your answers. I had made an educated guess of 5 yrs and that is what I told the person who asked me. But honestly it was just a guess so I wanted more opinions. I know that they would have a longer lifespan out in the wild. Which makes me wonder if we should have crabs at all...... but then again we have fish and they would live longer in the wild too. I think it's great to hear they can live so long in captivity if you take care of them and with a little luck. I have already lost one, I hope he is the only one I ever loose.

Sorry for rambling.. I'd still love to hear how long members have had their crabs..

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 8:47 pm

Starmaiden was right!
I had mine for 8 years.. and I was living in Delaware at the time (back in the 70's).. I got married and moved out of my parents home (and to another state) and couldn't take them with me.. so I gave them away. I have no idea if they are still living now or not.. I hope they are though.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 9:04 pm

I believe that Christa (HCA Pres.) knew of someone who had one of her hermit crabs for 25 years.

I did a poll on this subject several months ago. Most HCA veteran crabbers had at least one of their crabs for 2+ years.

I myself have been crabbing since early June 2005. I still have my original 2 PPs, plus 3 other PPs, & 1 rug, and 3 of the tiny ants. All 9 are at least a year old with me. I have several more that will be turning a year old within the next few months. Of course I have lost numerous crabs to PPS, bad molts, etc. that did not live for more than a month or two.