HCA: Hermit Crab Association

My local pet store has started carrying crabs, so Hermia won't be alone anymore. I got 2 to start out with, one is slightly bigger than Hermia and one is about 1 1/2 times her size. As far as I can tell they are both males. They've been in iso, and were just introduced today. So far, so good.The biggest one is named Tank, mostly because he plows through things in his way. He has a bright purple claw and his legs are bright orange and purple splotches. His eyes are elongated and his antennae are black with bright red tips. He's rambunctious and always on the go, and he has a huge personality.The smaller one, I have no idea what kind he is. I named him Hershey because he is the color of milk chocolate. He has purple on the very tips of his legs, but everything else is chocolate. Even his eyes and antennae. Is there such thing as a chocolate crab? He is very sweet and a bit shy. Tank tends to bully him a bit, and will roll him out of the way if Tank wants to sit where Hershey is.I found out that the pet store is getting a new shipment this afternoon. I may have to go see them tomorrow. I admit I'm addicted.

PPs come in quite a variety of colors.Some are bright red. Some chocolate brown. Some pale creamy.Typically there is some red tint to the lower legs, and some purple tint to the big pincher. Mostly a reddish or brownish hue dominates. The eyes are often a giveaway, with kind of a D-shape dip that looks like it was pinched flat. The big pincher is also large compared to the other legs, and much larger than the feeder claw. The antennules tend to be quite long.

Tank is definitely a PP. He has the D shaped eyes and a huge purple claw.Hershey's claw is chocolate with a purple streak down the middle and a white tip. It isn't very much bigger than his feeding claw. His eyes are not the D shape, which is why I wasn't sure what he was. The closest I've found to the shape of his eyes are pictures of cavipes. They are rounded ovals, with the stalk and eye being the same size from top to bottom, or head to tip. Oh, and the purple on his legs is turning white or cream. I've just noticed that in the last couple days. Maybe he's a mutt.

He is a PP, basics every crab found at a petstore in the US is a PP. PP come in all shapes and colors. Maybe it old help if you posted a pic or a video.Also Cavipes are now called a false species, because they are often misidentified a long time ago get we're occasionally I petstores but now it's almost impossibly to get them. And there are no crab mutts, expessially a Cavipe pp mix. The come from complete different places in the world.So it's defiantly a pp. I think your a little confused though PPs have circle or oval eyes and E's have the D eyes. But you don't have E's because they are tan/blue.

C. cavipes is a real specieshttp://www.tonycoenobita.com/species_cavipes_eng2.htmThey are quite rare to find in the US though.

I saidnor meant to say they are misidentified and confused with violas but I did say they exist but it's difficult and rare to get them"Also Cavipes are now called a false species, because they are often misidentified a long time ago get we're occasionally I petstores but now it's almost impossibly to get them. And there are no crab mutts, expessially a Cavipe pp mix. The come from complete different places in the world."

quote:He is a PP, basics every crab found at a petstore in the US is a PP. PP come in all shapes and colors. Maybe it old help if you posted a pic or a video. Far more common to U.S. petstores, yes but not the only species found here. I've found E's and Rugs here and the occasional Straw.

Yeah exotics are rare though

I have wanted straws for a long time but my mom & pop shop only had p.p.'s now they have straws! I have decided I don't want anymore crabs, at 50 yrs and with my health issues an no crabby people around here that i would trust them to I am not getting any more .. I have 4 p.p.'s well i mu.-*s++++ play w the ferret, as you see he is attacking the comp!!