Identify This Hermit Crab: Calcinus laevimanus -- 6/27/10 Hi Crew.... <Hi Gretchen, Lynn here today.> I couldn't find anyone who could identify this hermit crab that I've had for over a year now. He's never come after any of the fish (I doubt he could catch them anyway), <The fish would most likely have to be dead, injured, sleeping, or otherwise caught unawares.> ..but I wouldn't be surprised if he's made a meal out of a Turbo or 2 to get at their shell. <It happens. Be sure to keep the hermit well fed with meaty bits of shrimp, fish, clam, pellet food, etc., as well as dried seaweed/Nori in hopes that it will deter future predation.> I have no issues with him, but I'd just like to know what type of crab he is. He's got one huge claw, and hairless orange legs (plus a white stripe at the bottom of the leg)....Here are pictures of it: http://i722.photobucket.com/albums/ww227/wontonflip/125gallon/smDSC1697.jpg http://i722.photobucket.com/albums/ww227/wontonflip/125gallon/_DSC2593_500x318.jpg <Thanks for the photos! Your pretty little hermit looks like Calcinus laevimanus, commonly referred to as a left-handed or zebra hermit. Please see the following links for comparison: http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/reefs/guamimg/crustacea/anomura/Pages/Image10.html http://www.meerwasser-lexikon.de/images/rBturAvW8q.jpg > Thanks! <You're welcome, enjoy!> Gretchen <Take care, Lynn Z> Re: Identify This Hermit Crab: Calcinus laevimanus -- 6/27/10 <Hi Gretchen> YES! That's him! Thanks for the response, Lynn! :D <You're very welcome!> Gretchen <Take care, Lynn Z>

My hermits are becoming reclusive!  07/23/03 <Hi Chris, PF here with you tonight> I picked up 9 "zebra hermits" (although I swear they're blue-legged hermits by visual identification) at the LFS for some hair algae control, as well as 4 Astrea snails. For the first few days, the hermits chewed away happily at the algae, and tended to congregate in small meetings. It's been a week, and all the hermits have seemed to crawl into crevices in the LR. They all have their antennae (?) wiggling about on their faces, but they remain in there at leisure. Are these creatures nocturnal? I'm somehow doubting that. I know any aquarium won't live up to what my ideal 'bustling with life' scene might look like, but I was hoping for a little more action out of these guys. Should I be looking towards water quality issues? Everyone deciding to molt simultaneously?  The Astreas seem to be faring well, happily chewing away at the algae. 3 seem to be doing fine. The last one is quite lethargic, moving at a snail's pace, as it were.. I will be doing ammonia/nitrate tests in a few minutes.  pH is hovering at 8.2; s.g. at 1.024; temp ~82F. P.S. Since I last wrote to WWM a couple of months ago, my so-called "hard cure" has long since become quite rewarding, and I could not imagine ever wanting to buy "fully cured" LR! Tons of creatures lurk in the depths of my tank, including strange translucent tentacles (approx 1mm in diameter) that shoot out of tiny holes in the LR and suck in detritus with their vacuum-cleaner like tips (any ideas on what that might be btw)?  Thank you for providing this wonderful service WWM crew!  Enjoying this hobby, even if I am making all the beginner mistakes one at a time, - Chris <Well Chris, they could be blue legs in zebra snail shells. A rose by any other name... As for their behavior, remember, they don't read the same books we do. I've certainly seen my animals doing things that they're not supposed.  The critters on the rocks, are probably some sort of worm, maybe the spaghetti worm, check here for more: http:// www.wetwebmedia.com/polychaetes.htm   Mistakes, well, I try not to make beginner mistakes myself, but all new ones. ; ) At least it was one at a time, and not all at once.  Have a nice night, PF>

Crabs We purchased an eclipse system 6 from you and stocked it locally. We purchased two crabs (I assume left-handed hermit crabs) who have one large left claw. Both are relatively small and are in the aquarium with 5 fish. My question is, do we have to feed these crabs anything specific, or do they just clean the tank as a food source? Is two crabs too much for a 6 gallon aquarium? The pet store staff was clueless, but the crabs were so cute we couldn't resist, even without proper care instructions. <Hmm, well they may get a little hungry at times... depending on how much else is being fed to your other livestock... these are "nibblers" that are best kept happy and healthy by having some (cured) live rock in your system> I wish I'd seen your fish express feature before stocking; I've gained more information reading your site than in talking with the pet store staff. Thank you for your help! Linda Saldana >> <And thank you, for writing and your involvement in the hobby. Bob Fenner>

Snail & Hermit Crab waste Hi Bob: My tank finally cycled with a lot of algae bloom. Two days ago I added 10 Scarlet Reef Hermits 10 Turbo/Margarita Snails and 30 Red Leg/Left-Handed Hermits from FFExpress. They have done an excellent job cleaning but I noticed a lot of waste since I added them in the tank. Is this bad for the tank? And should I pull out some of the hermit crabs out? <You neglect to mention how large your tank is. I would not use anymore than 1 hermit crab per 10 gallons. I use about 1 snail per 2-4 gallons depending on the tank, lights, etc.> Thank You, Aram <You are welcome. -Steven Pro>
Re: Snail & Hermit Crab waste Hi Steve: I have a 54 gallon corner tank. I guess I should pull out some of the crabs and snails. What do you think? <Yes, I would remove all but two of each hermit crab. I would leave all the snails and if you need more algae eaters, get ten more Astrea, Cerith, or Nerites snails. I like to use a variety of snails as they all seem to prefer to eat different things. -Steven Pro>
Re: Snail & Hermit Crab waste Thanks Steve, FFExpress should redo their Web Site about adding the correct amount of Invertebrates. ~Aram <Nothing in particular about FFExpress, but all of these places are in the business of selling. I never assume any salesperson, selling anything, knows everything about their product or wants to be my friend. Pet stores are all businesses, too. Just approach them as you should any business, as an educated consumer. -Steven Pro>