What does hermit crab eat?
Common hermit crabs can be divided into three categories: Herminidae, Herminidae and Herminidae.
Because hermit crabs are omnivorous animals, they are called scavengers by the sea. They eat everything from algae and food residues to parasites. For family fish lovers, putting one or two hermit crabs in the aquarium will play the role of cleaners. The life span of hermit crabs is generally 2-5 years, but in a good feeding environment, they can often live for 20-30 years, and the longest recorded one has lived for 70 years.
So, what can hermit crabs eat?
Fruits: apple, coconut meat, mango, pear, honeydew melon, pitaya, persimmon, watermelon, banana and peach.
Vegetables: carrot (cooked), mousse, white radish (cooked), cabbage, potato, tomato, sweet potato, aquatic plants and spinach.
Meat: minced fish, clam or shrimp, crab fillet (cooked), fish, canned dog food, chicken sausage (for dogs), chicken bones and sausage (cooked).
Others: popcorn, cooked shrimp (with shells), bread, rock salt, plain rice, biscuits, eggshells, honey, mushrooms, dried roasted fish (for dogs).
Omnivores: Except acidic foods and dairy products.
How to raise hermit crabs
1, temperature: the temperature is not lower than 70 degrees Fahrenheit and not higher than 78 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Humidity: The relative humidity is 70% and the absolute humidity is about 50%, but most hygrometers measure relative humidity. Hermit crabs like to be wet, but wet doesn't mean sultry. Be sure to pay attention to ventilation and remember not to seal the feeding box.
3. Cushion: things like stones and sand. Hermit crab is a creature that lies in the daytime and comes out at night. During the daytime, it usually hides in the sand and crevices. Let the hermit crab feel safe, otherwise it is likely to commit suicide or self-harm in excitement! The selected bedding materials should be clean and environmentally friendly, and should be disinfected for a few days to allow parasites and some toxic substances inside to volatilize and kill.
4. Keep more hermit crabs together: it is recommended to buy more than 2 crabs. If the jar is small, don't keep too many, and 2 or 3 crabs will be enough.
5. Environmental sanitation of hermit crabs: Hermit crabs are saprophytic animals. If the surrounding environment is too dirty, it will lead to the disease of hermit crabs, bacterial proliferation and parasite proliferation.
6. Hermit crab is a crustacean: its shell will not grow with its body, and it needs to shed its skin! When molting, you should leave the shell where it stays every day. It needs a quiet and safe environment. If several are kept together, remove those that don't molt to avoid being attacked by other hermit crabs when they molt. The shell of hermit crab is basically changed once every 1 year. Although its shell is changed every day, shells of the same size may also be changed, and if several are together, they may also be changed with each other.
7. Hermit crab's food: Hermit crabs eat very little. Hermit crabs that live on the seashore feed on the remains of dead fish and the floating algae that are hit by the waves, etc. Hermit crabs prefer to eat something with a strong taste, such as fishy smell and fishy smell, but don't feed them with acidic things. If they are fed regularly, they may get rickets. You can't feed the hermit crab dairy products, and the hermit crab will die because it can't be digested; Also pay attention to balanced nutrition.
8. Seawater: Most of the food eaten by hermit crabs is water, and tap water cannot be used for water. The chemicals inside will kill hermit crabs. Of course, it is best for hermit crabs to drink seawater. If there is no seawater, remember not to add salt to the water, because the salt we eat contains iodine, which is poisonous to hermit crabs. Water should be changed frequently, as should food.
9, bathing: Hermit crabs need to take a bath every week, bathing is very necessary, which makes their gills moist. Because the hermit crab breathes through its gills, its gills should always be kept moist. The reason is that oxygen can be dissolved in the water on the surface of the gills and then exchanged with the capillaries on the gills. There should be no chlorine in the water, and the temperature should be room temperature, not obviously higher or lower than room temperature.
Bathe the hermit crab: put the hermit crab upside down in the basin, and when it comes out, the water will flow into the shell and wash away the dirt. Let them crawl or run freely for a few minutes after taking a bath, then take them out of the basin, drip dry water and let them walk around to dry themselves. Find a shoe box, put paper towels in it, and then put the dried hermit crab back in the breeding box. When the hermit crab takes a bath, you should clean the breeding box of the hermit crab. Take out the dirty things, empty the sand from the shell and put the food on the plate.
Why do hermit crabs live here?
Not all hermit crabs have anemones on their shells for the night. And those hermit crabs with anemones have different locations. Some hermit crabs put anemones directly on their backs, and some put a small anemone between two big claws. Even when foraging, we don't let go of the "children", but use the second pair of pincers as a predatory tool. There are many kinds of hermit crabs. One kind of hermit crab is called comb claw. Because it is small, it lives in a sponge. Hermit crabs and nereis often live in the same shell, becoming another kind of "trinity".
Hermit crab tips
Origin of name
Hermit crabs often eat mollusks such as shells and take other people's shells for themselves, which is the origin of the name of hermit crabs.
* * * phenomenon
The shell carried by hermit crabs is a good hard substrate for benthic organisms, on which many organisms are born. Among them, echinoderms (especially anemones and hydra) are also studied in detail when they are relatively similar in size.
The relationship between most hermit crabs and echinoderms is not absolute, and the relationship between them is not one-to-one. Most of them are mutually beneficial. The echinocellular cells of anemones can provide some protection for hermit crabs. Anemones can get hard substrate on the shell and debris when hermit crabs feed. Hydrozoa can also provide some protection for hermit crabs and prevent other large harmful appendages from forming settlements on their shells; In addition to obtaining debris, polyps can also avoid being submerged by sediment, and even promote the sexual reproduction of polyps when hermit crabs gather.
When establishing the relationship between hermit crab and anemone, both sides may take the initiative, depending on the species. Both of them have a fixed behavior process to complete this relationship, and they can also trigger this behavior process artificially. Hermit crabs will put anemones in proper positions on their shells to balance their center of gravity or effectively defend against enemies. In the absence of predators, hermit crabs will gradually lose the behavior of obtaining anemones, but in the presence of predators, this behavior will resume immediately. Dominant individuals can take anemone as a resource from inferior individuals.