HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Hi, I was just checking on my crabs & I saw a roly poly!! Are they dandoerous??? EEEEEEKKKK!!!!!! How do I get rid of them???????????? Help!?

I think I know what you mean by roly poly. Little dark grey/black bug, looks like it's wearing segmented armor, rolls up in a little ball when it feels threatened? If so, I don't *think* they're dangerous, I'm pretty sure they're vegetarians. I'm wondering how the heck one got into your tank, maybe on some fresh veggies or something? Or on a fresh flower?

I was just reading up on roly-poly's. I thought you were describing them as that, I didn't realize they actually go by that name. They also go by pill bug and sow bug. Anyway, they like damp, moist areas and they feed on decaying plants and are a food source for birds and lizards, one site says. Got any reptiles? Maybe they came in with the food.

I used to play with roly polies (also called Doodlebugs, at least by my siblings and I) I don't think they'll hurt the crabbies, but they will probably help keep the substrate clean. I know that Jedediah and some other crabbers have been experimenting with trying to balance a sort of eco-system in their tanks ie harmless bugs in the substrate to help keep it clean. You may or may not want to keep the bugs in there, but at least I don't think you have to panic.

Roly polys are woodlice. Those are often used as cleaners in reptile tanks. I don't use the normal woodlice for my crabitat because I know they sometimes nibble hatching phasmids and I don't want to find out if they find molted crabs tasty, too. You can get tropical, white woodlice that are harmless.So the roly poly won't attack the crab, but I think i'd pick it out just to be sure.http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/ ... /wlice.htm