# Planted Tanks > Vivariums >  Land hermit terrarium

## Justikanz

Hmm... Since a terrarium is a type of vivarium, maybe I can post this to share my experience...  :Grin:  

Recently did an overhaul of my 2ft hermit terrarium. The old concept was just putting a layer of substrate (gravel) and then plonk some driftwood and a small water dish in the tank, together with the animals. Then I added emersed java moss, some air plants and 1 earth star in a plant container. Never did I realised that the substrate, without some form of drainage, stays very damp and will not dry up. This attracts ants and some mysterious white worms. Also,the hermits will dig around, destroying all forms of plant life.

Old look:


So, I decide to do an overhaul.

After emptying the tank of the previous contents and drying it, I put down a layer of undergravel filter plate, followed by some clay pellets. These serve to provide drainage from excess water. The bad thing about this design is that there is still no place for accumulated water to run to. So, I stuff dried moss at the sides. 





My idea is the moss will absorb the mositure from the drainage layers and allow evaporation to occur. I certainly hope this is true!  :Razz:

----------


## Justikanz

I then topped the clay pellets with another layer of undergravel filter plates, arrange the wood and water dish and add on the dried gravel.



I decide to retain the plant container as the hermits seem to love digging inside it as it contains soil... One fella molted inside the container!...  :Grin:  





After placing the tank back to its intended location, the 7 inhabitants are set free.  :Angel:  They are very naughty and active and started climbing and attempting to tear through the arrangement immediately! Luckily, all the moss at the side fit tightly in and they only managed to pull some out.



Final look:

----------


## Fei Miao

Well thought out, can be a mangrove habitat  :Well done:  I think this set up would be great for those colourful fiddler crabs as well

----------


## avant

nice setup!!
tempting to set up a similar one like yours.. where did u get your hermits from? i saw them on sale when i was at taipei months back.. cute and active and not as shy as i had expected..

by the way, what are those orange pieces? fruits?

----------


## Justikanz

Yup, saw them at Taipei, they are also on sale here... .

They can be shy, if you suddenly appear...  :Smile:  Otherwise, they are extremely active, always making a lot of noise when they move about cos their shells knock on the tank glass and climbing all over... They are also landscapers... Always trying to re-arrange anything they can move... that's why I had to place rocks around the glass container...

The orange pieces are carrots. They quite love carrots and apples. When hungry, they will go for pears and Hikari Crab Cruisine... Heard they will take rice too...

----------


## avant

i visited a shop at DanShui which was selling all kinds of creatures (bugs and such) which also had the hermits on sale.. . the shop has some nice open concept with insects making their homes at some plant setup. quite amazed that the creatures didn't try to escape.  :Huh?:  

so i guess they are quite adaptable and easy to feed?

----------


## Justikanz

Btw, mine will try to climb up the wood and try to escape from the tank (think they are just being overactive)... That's why I lower the braches...  :Smile: 

C328 and 328Aquarium selling them now... Anyone interested can go get them... But please dop not soak them in water like they do (told C328 Aunty to place them in a dry tank liao). Their leggs are dropping due to the wetness... They will die soon if their environment is not dry...

----------


## looloo

Hi guys,

They are also selling them at Bishan Junction 8 (level 2) with assorted equipment (e.g. different shell patterns and sizes). Quite a popular booth with brisk business.

By the way, just a question, how do you clear the hermit's "business" i.e. their urine or manure? I am thinking of getting some but want to make sure it is of as little hassle as possible (have too many committments to maintain liao) : )

DesmonD

----------


## avant

is it a permanent booth? only selling hermit crabs or other creatures as well?

i would think that their "business" won't be as complicated compared to terrapins.. should not be much of a hassle.. the waste products would probably be merged with the base layer...

----------


## Justikanz

> Hi guys,
> By the way, just a question, how do you clear the hermit's "business" i.e. their urine or manure? I am thinking of getting some but want to make sure it is of as little hassle as possible (have too many committments to maintain liao) : )


I never see any real poo like the newts or terrapins... Perhaps their poo merged well into the substrate!  :Razz:  

Please provide a dry land area with a drinking plate rather than a land to water environment... The really do not like being too wet. Not very troublesome to keep them... I now have 12 in the 2ft tank!!

----------


## looloo

Not sure if its perm, but its the open air type next to Bata I think.

Now that's the part which I am puzzled about, if the business gets mixed up with the base layer, how does one clear it? Take the hermies out and wash the base?????

Been surfing the net for more information but search turns up nil on the cleaning up part : )

DesmonD

----------


## Justikanz

Let them be?  :Razz:  After a while, some natural sanitary engineers will take over. In right conditions, the tank won't smell... Mine never smell... But most important is to keep the substarte as dry as possible... Just feed them carrots and apples, mist once a couple of days and top up the water dish. Alsp, provide hiding places and climbing places...

----------


## avant

natural sanitary engineers???  :Huh?:  
reminded me of the dung bugs that i saw in a documentary of the amazon forest  :Surprised:  

looloo, we can look at justikanz setup and wait to see if any foul incidents occur haa...

----------


## looloo

Darn, such a good deal  :Shocked:  ? Even lower maintainance than my hammies or moss tank ha : )

But I do think one has to change the "bedding" once a while or else hhhmmm, the crabbies sleeping on a "waste" land... : )

DesmonD

----------


## Justikanz

Oh well...we are all trying out and learning... That's what this forum is about...  :Smile: 

I certainly hope to be able to find the BEST way to keep these fellas... Perhaps a bare tank might be good... But they like to dig around... So...

----------


## jtean

just curious, what do they feed on? they look cool to keep.  :Smile:

----------


## Justikanz

I feed them carrots, apples, pears and Hikari Crab Cruisine. But note that they prefer carrots and apples. And they dun like the skin... Yes, they are very choosy... 

An update, the new ones I 'rescued' from drowning from the LFS are rather fierce... And 1 of them still dropped 2 legs... *Sigh*... I hope they will settle down...

----------


## planters

cool looking hermits!

----------


## stormhawk

Kanz, nice looking tank! I got a spare tank lying around so maybe I might do something similar.  :Grin:  

I think yours are a terrestrial species of hermit crab, that might explain why they dislike a very wet environment. There's the aquatic species but they're usually from marine or brackish habitats.

----------


## avant

hmm.. i've seen them along the shore near the mangrove side of pasir ris beach a few years back.. i guess those are the brackish version that stormhawk mentioned... i think most ppl do not know that there are the water-loving and the water-hating versions  :Surprised:

----------


## Justikanz

Yes, at first I tot they were water loving... Then my first batch all died! When I was at Taipei, there's this lady who was selling them and she told me that these crabs are land crabs and should be kept in a humid place but not wet... 

Anyway, of the new additions to the tank, 2 of them seem to be dying... 1 dropped more legs and 1 got very weak... It was quite upsetting seeing them this way...  :Sad:

----------


## Justikanz

An update: 3 of the new hermits died... One was bubbling... Why ah? Would it be that they are are the brackish type? But they die when in the wet environment?... Now I am really confused...  :Huh?:   :Sad: 

There were no such problems with the older crabs... They were still very active...

----------


## stormhawk

They might be lacking something in their diet. Perhaps a search on the web regarding the diet for land hermit crabs might throw up some possibilities.

A humid place is indeed not supposedly a wet place, but in our weather its hard to maintain the humidity that they might require. If you could, perhaps a misting system would be the thing that would help these guys live well.

I know Eheim produces a misting spray system for terrariums and vivariums but I'm not sure if the item is sold here any longer. I last saw a box at Qian Hu FF a few years back. They might still be importing this item in but you have to enquire for availability.

----------


## Justikanz

Misting system? Dun need lah... I mist almost every night...  :Smile:  Part of maintenance...  :Angel:  

Anyway, think the new ones could be very stressed before I got them home... Hoping the other 2 new ones are ok...  :Opps:

----------


## primavera

I've kept mine (last year) in just a plastic container with a big oyster shell from a dinner for them to climb around with.

Didn't expect to have them in the first place, 4 specimens. Well a guy in the dorm i'm staying in bought them for a 'crab race', a betting game quite popular at least in uni social circles. Yeah, they put numbers on the shell  :Sad:  and have it run from the center of a round table. Whichever reaches the edge first wins. 

Anyway, no one bothered with it after the night and it was kept in the cardboard box it came with from the lfs. The guy put some sand he dug from the roadside, some dried leaves and a water container in the box. He also fed them loads of hermit food that came with it. Felt a bit sad for them. But anyway, here is the funny part: a few days later, we checked and one went missing. The 3 left went missing too the following day. Thought someone stole it and ...... hehe, a guy pissing at the urinary looked down, and yes, one was hiding under the porcelain bowl.  :Confused:  Well we later found the others roaming around the floor we're on. Everyone was away for most of the day for class, so that evening was pretty interesting (read:amusing) playing hide and seek with crabs! They were hiding behind furniture and scurrying down corridors and if you approach them, they plop into their shells. And boy they run fast too, for such a clumsy looking invertebrate at least. Those of you who have it, try it! 

Oh yes, they dug a hole in the cardboard box under the sand and escaped from there. So from then on, I decided to adopt them. First washed the marker ink off their shell. No money to buy new aquarium (at that time I only had one, my first ever proper planted, and I'm a student), so just used a plastic storage box and a big shell. Hermits liked climbing around the shell, and most of the day hides/hangs upside down underneath the concave depression inside. Quite amusing after lights off as they move around and make funny scratchy noises (it was in my bedroom btw). Fed them hermit food which looked like a mix of oat meal and "breakfast stuff", besides some Hikari micro pellets (with my fishy's permittion of course). Cleaned the tank once a week, when it starts stinking. Yeah, quite disgusting without substrate and bacteria to break down. Dont know if I should do that but i washed them briefly under running water and then put them back. Saw an article on Christmas Island red crabs in National Geo, had a pic of a kid giving a crab a tap 'shower' to moisten the gills on their yearly migration to the sea. Oh and no water receptacle anymore as they topple it, just millimeters of water in box. The middle of the plastic box is raised, so a 'moat' of water collects around the edge.

Anyway, long story short, one died while changing a shell (I gave it a bigger shell). The 3 left I kept for 4 months. Followed me back to Malaysia for sem break in a food container. Lasted a few months with my family's care(came back after the break). Cute little creatures, if only I had the resources to provide for them better.

Min

----------


## pantroglodytes

I have a puffer fish too..oh yeah..dont buy those from Bishan..bloody expensive...$25 for a non active hermit...got mine at $8 about three times the size they sell at bishan...comparatively to those at Bishan..mine is like Jordan...

erm...i did make a small swimming pool for it though..somewhat like a beach...would it affect the state of the hermit?

----------


## Justikanz

Puffer fish???  :Huh?: 

Anyway, Land hermits are not happy to have their legs wet... So, if you have a pool thingie, make sure the water stays inside a bowl or something and not have the land like a slope leading into a pond/lake. My earlier hermits became inactive and then died when the land becomes too wet because of the water wetting the land area...

That's why my this setup is dry... I only have a water dish and it is rather shallow as sometimes the hermits can be clumpsy and may not be able to drag themselves out of the water if they fall in while drinking/bathing/playing with water.

 :Smile:

----------


## ranmasatome

If you have a water dish in there then you really dont need to mist everynight. The problem is that if they are land hermits then they dont really like being wet... msiting included. Singapore is humid enough.. and the crabs are smart.. if they need water they will go to the water dish. If i am not wrong i think the deaths are resulting from being too wet. Crabs are crabs and will still need water but land crabs are different in that they are able to hold water inside them better...so they dont need water that often. If i were you.. i would mist once or at most twice a week.

----------


## Justikanz

I mist almost nightly... The fellas are more active after that... Maybe cos my room is air-conditioned at night and the cover only covers 80% of the top, thus making the air a little dry...

But, yes, they dun really like the wetness... scrambling away when I spray the water on them...  :Razz:

----------


## pantroglodytes

> I mist almost nightly... The fellas are more active after that... Maybe cos my room is air-conditioned at night and the cover only covers 80% of the top, thus making the air a little dry...
> 
> But, yes, they dun really like the wetness... scrambling away when I spray the water on them...


I think you are right man....after putting the water in..my hermit became quite lethargic. I just poured away all the water after reading your posts...and placed at water dish instead.. :Smile:

----------


## Justikanz

:Crying:  

Just an update... One of the Taiwan hermits called it a day this morning...  :Sad:  No idea why... It was out of its shell in the morning, the shell quite a distance away... But this fella had always been reclusive and shy... It is the first hermit I had on my hands and the first one that I want to bring home... Oh well, hope it had a good time when it is alive...  :Sad:  

Sigh... This is the reason why my mum refuses to keep a dog... We can be so affected by the death of our pets...

----------


## pantroglodytes

> Just an update... One of the Taiwan hermits called it a day this morning...  No idea why... It was out of its shell in the morning, the shell quite a distance away... But this fella had always been reclusive and shy... It is the first hermit I had on my hands and the first one that I want to bring home... Oh well, hope it had a good time when it is alive...  
> 
> Sigh... This is the reason why my mum refuses to keep a dog... We can be so affected by the death of our pets...


Oh man.,..so sorry to hear about the hermit....something died in my tank too..my poor puffer...sighz

----------


## aquatic777

interesting....... feel like starting wif the empty 2ft tank lying around. i've reared newts and frogs but not crabs.

----------


## Justikanz

Playing around with my new camera...  :Razz: 



Anyway, reading up now on these land hermits... Hopefully I can identify the species I have and the best way to keep them happy in captivity...

Anyway, if interested, my crabs should be either be one or more of these: _Coenobita rugosus_, _C. cavipes_ or _C.brevimanus_...  :Smile:

----------


## Justikanz

Some updates of my Land Hermit Crabs..  :Smile: 

Zzz....


Climbing...




Exploring...

----------


## avant

seen any on sale lately? i can't seem to find them anymore  :Sad:

----------


## Justikanz

Nope, had not seen them on sale these days too... Try the Bishan Junction 8 shop... But I really dun like the pained shells they used...  :Knockout:

----------


## avant

thanks... maybe i'll go take a look...
but painted shells seem like a real turn off..hmm..

----------


## Justikanz

One way is to get the non-painted shells to place in the tank, hoping they will change shells. they most likely will as they are very vain creatures and will like to change new shells when available.  :Smile: 

Then remove the discarded painted shells so they dun re-use them.  :Wink:

----------


## avant

hmm.. haa..that's a good solution as well  :Smile: 
thanks!

----------


## Justikanz

Hmm... More pictures of my hermits...  :Smile: 



Drinking water...


Eating carrot...




Attempting to climb away...


Peek-a-boo!


My, what big eyes you have...  :Smile:

----------


## Thirteen

hmm.. i would like to know if the hermit tank of urs will emit a crab smell.. those "Giam Hhe" smell...  :Roll Eyes:  i cant stand those smell..if got then i think i cant keep them..lol

----------


## Justikanz

Hmm... Dun think so leh... Their tank quite dry, except for the water dish... Which they are constantly trying to have the water drained...

Talking about that, I have to shift the water dish liao! Every night, the dish would be empty cos they will dig around the dish and throw the dry moss into the dish, drawing the water out and into the substrate... And with the dug out pebbles also thrown into the dish, the water is displaced faster... So angry with them... But I like their activity... Shows that they are kept busy, active and healthy...

Ok, back to the smell. The 'giam hhe' smell should be the shit smell, right? I noticed that my skink tank smell rather like that and it is the shit that smells... The hermit shit is seldom seen and dun smell... At least so far, they dun smell...  :Razz:

----------


## Thirteen

omg... but they are pretty living dwellers from wad u describe..hehe...

----------


## stormhawk

Thomas, I see you have two Coenobita species in the pictures? How do you differentiate rugosus from brevimanus? Is it via leg colours?  :Smile:

----------


## avant

nice shots.. you made them look so inquisitive haa...

----------


## valice

ur sigma macro is coming up with very beautiful pictures now! love the 1st picture... the blurring effect around it made ur hermit stand out... maybe can shift the focus sightly higher so that the shell is also focused instead of the branch...

can pm me wat settings u used?

----------


## Justikanz

> Thomas, I see you have two Coenobita species in the pictures? How do you differentiate rugosus from brevimanus? Is it via leg colours?


JY, I primarily use size and colour... I labeled the first pic wrongly... It should be a rugosus and not a brevimanus... More detailed difference would be the shape (and colour) of the antennae, the size of the claws, the way they stay in their shell, colour and I think even the smoothness of the claws... I got mine from Taiwan, so that helps by cutting the species to about 3 to differentiate. Size and colour is a good medium for these 3 species to be differentiated.




> omg... but they are pretty living dwellers from wad u describe..hehe...





> nice shots.. you made them look so inquisitive haa...


They are just being naturally inquisitive and active... Oh, one thing to note... They are mainly nocturnal and makes a lot of noise as their shells knock on the glass. They seem to enjoy knocking their shells against the tank glass!...  :Roll Eyes:  




> ur sigma macro is coming up with very beautiful pictures now! love the 1st picture... the blurring effect around it made ur hermit stand out... maybe can shift the focus sightly higher so that the shell is also focused instead of the branch...


Thanks, Vincent. I wanna focus on the eyes and legs... Which inevitably causes the branch to be in focus.

Anyway, I have not got a flash and dun wanna use the internal one as it will cause a light reflection on the glass, so cannot use a smaller aperture to get a bigger depth of field as many suggested. Thus, can only choose to focus on 1 point...  :Smile:

----------


## semota

hey justin, just asking...my hermit just moulted his exoskeleton...he doesnt move about much these days..not drinking nor eating...he just keeps burying himself and hides in his shell all day...hibernation? Do they even hibernate?

----------


## Justikanz

Justin? Justikanz is not Justin.  :Smile: 

When mine shed his exoskeleton, it was hiding and burying itself in the soil for a couple of days. When you see it start to eat its old skin, you can probably remove the old skin, if you want to keep it and it will begin to explore around again...  :Smile: 

Dun think they hibernate. They are naturally found no further than the tropics (at most Southern Japan)... No need to hibernate...

----------


## bornwild

> Justin? Justikanz is not Justin. 
> 
> When mine shed his exoskeleton, it was hiding and burying itself in the soil for a couple of days. When you see it start to eat its old skin, you can probably remove the old skin, if you want to keep it and it will begin to explore around again... 
> 
> Dun think they hibernate. They are naturally found no further than the tropics (at most Southern Japan)... No need to hibernate...


hi.i new here..do u have any strawberry?i been lookin ard but dun have le..gt any shop u see gt strawberry?thk.

----------


## stormhawk

bornwild, what exactly do you mean by strawberry? the thread's about hermit crabs, not strawberries.  :Laughing:  

Anyway, I last saw some at C328. Doubt they're still there.

----------


## bornwild

hi ther..it strawberry land hermit crab,c from a website..it dark red in colour ..i oni hav light orange in colour..btw wher c328?in clementi?thk..

----------


## avant

yup...c328 is near the clementi mrt.. block 328  :Smile:

----------


## Justikanz

The strawberry LHC (_Coenobita perlatus_) is not very common... As it originates from Madagascar, Japan and even Australia and USA, rather than Indonesia, The Philippines and Taiwan, I doubt it will be seen in the trade... It look VERY pretty in the pics, though...  :Smile:

----------


## bornwild

> The strawberry LHC (_Coenobita perlatus_) is not very common... As it originates from Madagascar, Japan and even Australia and USA, rather than Indonesia, The Philippines and Taiwan, I doubt it will be seen in the trade... It look VERY pretty in the pics, though...


ok ..thks man..hope to find it..heard tat u been to taipei..wher is e place ahh?i been once to danshui n oni can find e normal colour..can pm mi?thk..

----------


## Justikanz

Hey, if you find the strawberry, let me know! I am definitely interested to have a couple of them...  :Smile:

----------


## Justikanz

Oh bornwild, you can't recieve PM as you do not have the minimal posts yet...

----------


## avant

ah... i think i saw the same hermit crabs at the shop at danshui haa..

let me know too if you found any... i heard its not the season...

----------


## Justikanz

Try Rao He and Hua Xi Jie Night Markets. Check my blog.  :Smile:  They have in the winter time also.  :Smile:

----------


## bornwild

> Try Rao He and Hua Xi Jie Night Markets. Check my blog.  They have in the winter time also.


ok..no wonder i can't pm u,,i gt 3 hermit frm danshui,it smaller than wt i gt in sg.thk,i will update u guys if i can find any strawberrys. :Grin:

----------


## loupgarou

what a fascinating topic... I wish I had the room. and the time to do maintenance to keep these critters...

----------


## Justikanz

Loupgarou, you HAVE the room.  :Smile:  Just maybe Muffin might wanna 'play' with them, though...  :Smile: 

And they are relatively low maintenance creatures.  :Smile:

----------


## loupgarou

my idea of low maint is changing tank/clean up once in 2 weeks, maybe feeding once every 2-3 days.. like I do my fish. heh

----------


## Justikanz

Hmm, then maybe they will suit you well.  :Smile: 

I had not changed their substrate. Will probably do so annually or twice annually. No smell yet. Better to use a thin layer of fine sand. Less work.

And I usually feed them cut carrots/apples only once or twice a week. They can take a few days to finish the portion I feed them...

And the hardest part is topping up the water dish, which, depending on the size of the dish, will be once a day to once every 3-4 days. Before I shift the water dish to a new location, the crabs keep having the water drained and so I need to top uo daily. Now better liao.  :Smile: 

So, low enough maintenance?  :Smile:

----------


## loupgarou

well, if I see them in c328..

you mean to say really no water in the tank? I was think a 3/4 land, 1/4 wet, toss in some feeders/live fish + mudskippers.. haha.. 

a 3ft x 1/2 feet custom setup. placed on the dining table..

----------


## Justikanz

Check to see if their legs are dropping off when buying them from the LFSs. They are usually kept in too wet a condition and the crabs are too stressed and legs start dropping off...

If you are using a 3ft tank, then I say your setup might do well. Just make sure that there are some parts of the land area remains DRY. Not even those that are damp. The crabs will stay there. You can use sand instead of gravel...

I kept them in a land+water tank before and it didn't work out. The substrate draws the water upwards to the land, keeping the land damp and wet. The crabs HATE that... But the tank was small and in a bigger tank, chances of having an area of DRY land is higher.

Have fun...  :Smile:

----------


## bornwild

c328 hermit r much bigger in size..huh,,mayb justikanz u can buy a sea sponge to soak inside ur water bowl for them,muz beta..no more spills ..cheers :Grin:

----------


## avant

c328 selling hermit crabs again?

----------


## bornwild

i went today..sold out,as them when comin n they reply nt sure ..
u interested?

----------


## Justikanz

C328 still sells when there are stock. But their shells are painted or very plain and dull coloured. Recently, they have purple-legged _Coenobita brevimanus_...

Bornwild, they seem to prefer drinking by scooping using the water using their claw... So far, after shifting the water dish, they had been good...  :Razz:

----------


## avant

yah...interested.. keeping a lookout for my friend.. also considering to get for myself..
let me know if you folks know of any stocks there... it's quite a distance for me to go to c328 haa.. can't go there every day to check it out haa..
thanx  :Smile:

----------


## bornwild

> C328 still sells when there are stock. But their shells are painted or very plain and dull coloured. Recently, they have purple-legged _Coenobita brevimanus_...
> 
> Bornwild, they seem to prefer drinking by scooping using the water using their claw... So far, after shifting the water dish, they had been good...


mostly they anyhow paint their shell..henderson rd fishshop 88 gt sell,it smaller than c328,some silimar to purple-legged but it blue in color if u look carefully.tat was ard last wk when i went ther.. :Smile:

----------


## avant

ah.. where's the exact location of this fishshop 88?  :Smile:

----------


## bornwild

> ah.. where's the exact location of this fishshop 88?


it at henderson rd.i nt sure abt e blk,,it oppsite blk 92 ,gt to cross over e road.i juz went ther today,condition of e hermit nt so gd ..

----------


## avant

hmm... okay.. probably will give it a miss.. not too convenient to go there haa..
thanks for the update!

----------


## bornwild

justinkanz..u left carrots n apples inside ur tank for days but it does nt attract any food flies or turn bad?does ur hermits change their shell yet?

----------


## Justikanz

Carrots are not a problem. Apples attract ants. That's why I was looking for a skink to eat them. But my room condition not good for skink, so did not go ahead. 

So, need to look out for these pests and kill them when they appear. 

Several of them molted, if that is what you are asking. 2 of them recently. Think maybe a couple more did that without me noticing.

I have an extra shell in the tank and some of them will be switching their shells because of that lor...  :Razz:  1 will swtich and another will switch with the one the first abandoned...  :Razz:  But I had yet to see them physically do it...

Oh... Just a note, if anyone reading this have mealworms, do NOT feed them cabbage... They dun eat and it attracts small flies. *Yucks!*  :Mad:

----------


## ranmasatome

small flies?? yes yes yes!! :Smile:

----------


## Justikanz

You are welcomed to my room and catch whatever insects free-flying/crawling, hiding etc. if interested... FOC.  :Grin:  :Razz:

----------


## Justikanz

C328 has LHCs again. Much healthier stock and has the white-, red- and purple-legged ones among them. No time to determine the Coenobita species they are...  :Razz:  Can't resist, so I bought another 3! I am addicted to LHCs! *Yikes!*

Here's some pics of the old ones and I think a new addition too...  :Smile:

----------


## avant

ah... are there a lot left? shucks.. it's sooo far away..

----------


## bornwild

they have white??great,,,coz my white died 1 days after i bought it,,tik will go racke c328..btw justinkanz wt camera u use?the pics r very clear..great pics  :Grin: went ther after readin ur post n bought 3 more,quite small ,get 2 white n 1 red..

----------


## Ariel

Anyone know where to get calcium block for HC in singapore?
Thanks in advance!

----------


## dkk08

If I'm not wrong I saw some at C328...
They've some nice HC too just came back from there...

----------


## bornwild

mayb u can put in a piece of coral,they might scape calcium frm it..or cuttlefish bone.. :Grin:

----------


## Justikanz

It might be good to sprinkle the calcium powder on the food or dissolve in their drinking water... Hmm... Makes me want to do so too...

----------


## pulp2000

Hi

I saw C328 selling some crabs that look like hermit crabs. It's at the container near to the pail where they sell some plants. 

Can anyone confirm it is indeed hermit crabs?

Welcome to share any experiences with these crabs as I am contemplating the idea  :Smile: )

----------


## budak

If it's a crablike thing with a snail shell, it's a hermit-crab.

http://www.hermit-crabs.com/care.html

----------


## Justikanz

As these hermits are land hermits, I am shifting this to vivarium section and combining it with another hermit crab thread there so as not to confuse readers. They will not survive in water and we do not want to lead others to think they should be kept in water.  :Smile: 

Pulp2000, check the thread.  :Smile:

----------


## bornwild

> As these hermits are land hermits, I am shifting this to vivarium section and combining it with another hermit crab thread there so as not to confuse readers. They will not survive in water and we do not want to lead others to think they should be kept in water. 
> 
> Pulp2000, check the thread.


wher is it ??no have any update yet?? :Shocked:

----------


## Justikanz

Btw, I should be selling my set up due to increased commitment and I don't have as much time. If anyone who posted here have an interest, let me know.

----------


## xpander

hi there .. that is a nice set up u got there ...

----------


## Justikanz

Dear all, please do note that EXCEPT for the shop @Bishan, apparently, AVA does not allow hermits from any other sources... _(As quoted from shops who had their hermits confiscated from AVA officers...)_

----------


## kemp

the shop @ bishan? are you refering to the one inside Bishan Junction 8?




> Dear all, please do note that EXCEPT for the shop @Bishan, apparently, AVA does not allow hermits from any other sources... _(As quoted from shops who had their hermits confiscated from AVA officers...)_

----------


## wks

> the shop @ bishan? are you refering to the one inside Bishan Junction 8?


Yes, looks like the owner is the monopoly until another competitor comes on board.

----------


## Quixotic

> Dear all, please do note that EXCEPT for the shop @Bishan, apparently, AVA does not allow hermits from any other sources... _(As quoted from shops who had their hermits confiscated from AVA officers...)_


Hmm... interesting. Any idea why this particular shop? The shop @Bishan must be complying to certain conditions but not the others.

----------


## avant

Well... to whoever is interested in knowing about this shop, they have a website at http://www.hahacrabs.com  :Smile:

----------


## valice

> Hmm... interesting. Any idea why this particular shop? The shop @Bishan must be complying to certain conditions but not the others.


Yup... I heard that the condition was to pay lotsa money to AVA for the monopoly license... Just a hearsay... Not sure if it is true...

Hmmm... Is this considered as deframation?

----------


## michael lai

That would be drifting a little bit out of line, Vincent. I think best to keep it as 'hearsay'.  :Grin:

----------


## Justikanz

Ya... A hearsay is better...  :Razz:  Anyway, the point is, don't ask how to buy or where to buy anymore... Just go to Haha Crab store at Bishan Junction 8. You can get the shells from another place and hope they change if you want a more natural look.  :Smile:

----------


## Quixotic

Haha... but my question is why, not how, not where.

Anyway, from the looks of it, they _seem_ to be better equipped, knowledge and husbandry wise to sell them than your ordinary LFS.

----------


## Justikanz

Heh heh... One of my hermits decided to go naked! It threw away its shell and had been walking around without a shell for several days now!... I wonder if it is sick and whether it will survive long term...  :Confused:

----------


## soyadude

Haha sounds so funny though... a hermit crab flasher.. a 'naturalist' hermit crab. Hilarious.

----------


## guqin

I am getting very concerned about the sale of hermit crabs for the aquarium trade in Singapore. I went to a LFS to check out the specimens and was horrified that the tips of the hermit crab's legs have been clipped off. The tips of most, if not all, hermit crabs are clawed to enable they to climb and move around effectively in the wild. While clipping off the claws appears to do the crabs no harm in captivity, I do not know how many of the crabs scumb to infections and die as a result of this. I think the claws are clipped to prevent injury to the owner, especially children who buy them on impluse.

I don't know what AQ forumers think about this, but I certainly would not buy hermit crabs from LFS.

----------


## Quixotic

That's awfully sad.

----------


## Justikanz

Clipped? Most of the tips were dropped off due to their constantly being immersed in water. Anyway, it would be bad if they were really clipped off... In any case, the tips will grow back in 2, 3 subsequent molts... But, anyway, AVA no longer allows the sale of hermit crabs at the LFSs, so do take note.

Soyadude, unfortunately, though it seems funny, the hermit died in the end... Hermits will die of they do not get into a shell, their body is just too soft and vulnerable. I think it actually was suicidal...  :Sad:

----------


## planted86

even marine hermit crabs also cannot??? or is it land hermit only???

----------


## soyadude

> Clipped? Most of the tips were dropped off due to their constantly being immersed in water. Anyway, it would be bad if they were really clipped off... In any case, the tips will grow back in 2, 3 subsequent molts... But, anyway, AVA no longer allows the sale of hermit crabs at the LFSs, so do take note.
> 
> Soyadude, unfortunately, though it seems funny, the hermit died in the end... Hermits will die of they do not get into a shell, their body is just too soft and vulnerable. I think it actually was suicidal...


:/ Sorry to hear that. I don' know much about hermit crabs..

----------


## Justikanz

Dude, it's ok. We also don't know much about them. There's also limited literature on them... I guess flasher hermits are probably suicidal hermits!  :Opps:

----------


## DarrC

$25 for a small hermit is really ridiculous......hopefully my little imported hermit will keep my wife happy long enough.

----------


## soyadude

By the way... since their tail end is in a shell... how do they.. you know clear their bowels? Do they have a digestive system? Do they let it all go in the shell?

----------


## planted86

nope... don't think so.... don't think their "anus"( don't know the correct term of that part) is at the end of the "tail"... that "tail" part is use for holding on to the shell.....

----------


## zhiz22

bro, this is fully land hermit?

i keeping it dry with water dish according to your instruction

but using coral chips as substrate.

----------


## Justikanz

Yes, dry land hermit. Keep the land area dry, else they will start dropping their legs. Give them some substrate that they can dig. Sand or small grained gravel would be good. Soil (used and dried ADA soil, for example) might be good as well. They like to dig and hide when they are moulting.

----------


## zhiz22

just found my mum collection seashell useful already. they are eating bread, pellets already. saw them soak in fresh and salt water dishes. think i need to give them a bigger tank. hope they survive well, once they stabilize i can do more or even add more. 

btw is rock salt ok? those aquarium type.

----------


## zhiz22

i got so many shells for them~!!!!

still yet to get gravel for them, small sized ones. anyone got spare?

----------


## Justikanz

Think better to use marine salt...  :Smile: 

You are so detailed... I never bother to give them salt water...  :Opps: 

It is a good idea, I think...

----------


## zhiz22

> Think better to use marine salt... 
> 
> You are so detailed... I never bother to give them salt water... 
> 
> It is a good idea, I think...



hmm, i thought its a must to provide salt water?

where to get cheap marine salt?

----------


## zhiz22

added a driftwood inside and finer coral sand/chip to the original coral chip mixed substrate. they seems happpier with the driftwood around now, not so scared.

----------


## zhiz22

How does hermit crab poop?  :Smile:

----------


## Justikanz

If I didn't remember wrongly, the anus is at the part where the soft belly and the hard exoskeleton meet...

Hmm... I think this thread can be split into 3 separate threads for reading convenience... Let me work on it later...  :Razz:

----------


## zhiz22

bro work hard!

your initial post on this thread is really useful for newbies who wants to set up a new set up.


here's mine

----------


## Justikanz

Managed to get 2 _Coenobita perlatus_, commonly known as the Strawberry...

VERY pretty... and is more curious than the other species... Bigger and love water more than others too...  :Razz: 







The other inhabitants of the terrarium...  :Smile:

----------


## zhiz22



----------


## Quixotic

They look lovely and inquisitive. Do you all give names to your pet crabs?  :Razz:

----------


## Justikanz

I had names for 2... They were from my friend... And then 1 died... It was VERY upsetting... So, better not to name...  :Opps:

----------

