HCA: Hermit Crab Association

So, in digging for research papers on coconut crabs a while back, I stumbled across this interesting document and figured I'd share it here.

http://titag.org/2016/2016papers/walkercoconutcrab.pdf

Produced by the San Diego Zoo, it outlines all the details of how they care for Kenny, their coconut crab. While I'm sure none of us are going to be keeping coconut crabs any time soon, I found it interesting how closely it mirrors how we care for our hermits.

His food preferences are interesting, too. Admittedly, I started feeding pinky mice after seeing Kenny chowing down on mice. And boy, it was a huge hit in my tank! I started feeding extremely ripe mango based on this doc, too. Another win in the home tank! I've gotten some enrichment ideas from it, too.

There's also a cool timeline where they tracked his molting progress via a pinhole camera inserted into his burrow.

And.. these photos aren't from the paper, but here's some I took on my visits to him down in San Diego:











I've got some video of him, too: https://youtu.be/dnfnLfKUlAI

(I am fascinated by coconut crabs, so don't mind me.. geeking out here.)

Great photos. Thanks

Interesting read. I will say that I think their coconut crab could be an individual though when it comes to food preferences...

Great pics (As usual!)

Lovely pics!

Pinkies go over well in my tank too. Just don't leave them in the heat too long.

My fave B latro fact is that, while normally edible, they've been known to be fatally toxic to humans... if they've eaten a specific plant (also fatally toxic to humans).

Also, they're just crazy gorgeous animals.

man you guys are hardcore, im not sure if i could handle leaving a pinkie in my crabtank. the funny thing is i wouldnt mind feeding one to a snake at all. im sure its the idea of being nibbled on vs swallowed in one gulp that gives me the willies.

if i call you a crazy crab person im sure you will understand i say so with admiration

I wouldn’t mind putting mice or smaller rats in my setup if I had a crab such as this. It doesn’t really bother me, I just wouldn’t be around to watch him eat it.

ROSIEonFIRE wrote:man you guys are hardcore, im not sure if i could handle leaving a pinkie in my crabtank. the funny thing is i wouldnt mind feeding one to a snake at all. im sure its the idea of being nibbled on vs swallowed in one gulp that gives me the willies.

if i call you a crazy crab person im sure you will understand i say so with admiration

Lol, I try not to visualize what I know they must be doing on pinky night...

But honestly, between the creb crew (of 8 ) & the clean up crew (of who-knows how many) I don't see pinkies after a couple hours anymore - they get dragged off & then dissappear almost magically. They seem to be a hot commodity, more so it appears with the bigger crabs. (So I assume Birgus would for sure like them too!)

I wonder how often they'd get something like that in the wild... I imagine finding a dead mouse before anyone else gets to it would be super lucky! Though they have a decent sense of smell I suppose.

I'm sure they can find mice and rat nests by smell, and like any predator they know what to do with food when they find it. We think of them as harmless scavengers, but they can easily dispatch live insects, and other crabs, and pretty much anything else they are lucky enough to catch. Heck, have you seen those videos showing what a group can do to an entire dead pig? A pinkie, or nest of pinks, would be nothing. Mom on the other hand....

I would love to be able to see him in person.. need to get one as a pet lol

He's a beautiful crab, that's for sure! But I'm pretty sure they're not legal as pets. From what the zookeepers told me, Kenny was confiscated from someone trying to get him into the country (whether for food or for a pet, they didn't know) and then given into the care of the SD Zoo afterwards.

I love coconut crabs, but yeah... they're better left in the wild where they belong. Even SD Zoo, who are serious professionals, had difficulties finding an enclosure that would keep Kenny happy. Took them several tries before they could find one appropriate.

And I guess pinkies aren't for the squeamish. When my whole crew is up and active, they can polish off a couple of pinkies in a few hours. There's never any leftovers. It's their absolute favorite treat. But it does gross out friends of mine.