Hermit Crab ID

[srlee762]

Hello everyone. I just need a little help ID'ing this guy. I've only ever purchased what's supposed to be blue legged hermits. I had 20 to start, and now after battling, they've reduced themselves to 5. I've had the hermits for about a year and a half now and they've remained small.....minus this one. I only started looking at this guy closer because he's owning any snail I put in and grabbing it's shell (it's currently in a snail shell now) even though there's other bigger shells in the tank. At closer look I noticed he does not look like a blue leg...so I did some research...I thought maybe a scarlet hermit, but his claws are huge and has white tips on his legs, and the scarlets I've seen don't look like this one. He's a deep red color.

Thank you!!

 

[srlee762]

Aye....just did more research and it appears to be an Orange Claw Hermit, or Calcinus tibicen...but not much information on them. Anyone here have more info on them?

 

[rssjsb]

Pretty typical hermit. They'll eat algae, leftover food, and . . . snails.

 

[Betta132]

No hermit in the world will leave snails alone.
Get money cowries. The slit in the shell is too small to let a crab get in.

 

[rssjsb]

Although I think money cowries are carnivores, not algae eaters, so may not replace other types of snails in a cuc.

 

[Betta132]

Really? I have a money cowrie who's been chowing down on my algae for a couple of months now. At least, I'm pretty sure it's a money cowrie...
He's a little fella, slightly over half an inch long, and his shell has that tan-and-white mix money cowries have. I googled "live money cowrie" and about 3/4 of the pictures with mantle included look like him. Also, the LFS who sold him to me is very seldom wrong with their IDs of things.

 

[rssjsb]

I said carnivores, when I really meant "detrivores." But what do I know? I may be confusing them with some other type of cowrie. I've got one and haven't really noticed what it eats because it's only active at night.

 

[Betta132]

We must have different kinds. Mine cruises around during the day pretty often, though I have a hard time keeping track of him. His camouflage is very effective.