Shy Crabs

[hermicrabs73]

I bought 4 Purple Pinchers a week ago from my local pet store. They are so shy and only come out at night. They burrow into the substrate during the day. Are they just destressing or will they ever come out and play during the day. The pet store had them in inadequate conditions so I figured that could have stressed them out.
Sorry if this is a stupid question but these are my first crabs I've owned. Thanks in advance for the help.

[Allyb01]

They are probably de-stressing or molting right now. My hermit crabs that I bought a month ago have been burrowed under the sand with no return up for about 2 weeks. After they molt, they should come up and stay up more often.


Proud owner of 6 PPs,Twinkie, Tweedles, Tiny, Nugget, Squidgy, and Bumbie!

[hermicrabs73]

Thanks; like I said I'm new to all of this and I didn't know how much was 'de-stressing' and how much was 'normal behavior'.
So after my crabs settle in will the spend just as much time out during the day as the night?
I use a 12/12 light schedule. Also is that a good day/night schedule or should I be using different times?

[Allyb01]

Your crabs will probably spend more time above ground after they de-stress. They may go down during the day to sleep and come up at night. It all depends on what they want to do. A 12/12 light schedule sounds fine to me. For my crabs, they go to bed whenever I go to bed. So around 10:00pm I turn off the crabitat light. They are usually already sort of awake by then. Then the light comes back on around 9:00 in the morning.


Proud owner of 6 PPs,Twinkie, Tweedles, Tiny, Nugget, Squidgy, and Bumbie!

[hermicrabs73]

So would this also be the reason they haven't been eating much. I've been filling up their food bowl everyday with fresh fruits and meat sources around 10pm and it doesn't look like they have been eating anything.

[CallaLily]

It is very normal for new crabs (or crabs moved into a new tank) to hide more. They're adjusting to their new home. Double check temps and humidity (calibrate your hygrometer if you haven't yet) just to be sure. Providing them with a lot of cover and hides help them to feel secure too.

Once they're used to their surroundings you may see them out and about during the day some, but for the most part they're nocturnal so they'll be most active at night when all has quieted down. Your day/night cycle is good.

Keep in mind every crab is different. Some will hide more or dig more. Some will be out and about more.

Edit: They eat such small amounts it can be hard to tell when they have eaten. Check out: My Hermit Crab Isn't Eating or Drinking!. They may be resurfacing late at night to eat a bit. They may be munching on other things in the tank like wood, moss, cocofiber. Molting crabs do not resurface for food or water. If you feel like you're wasting a lot of fresh foods with them dug under, you can switch to dried for a while. It'll keep longer.

[hermicrabs73]

Thank you guys for all of the help and information.