Hermit crabs and snails- Cant they just get along
- Thread starter tent boy
- Start date
well after the hermit crabs eat all the food they will go after snails or just want a bigger shell. if you have extra bigger shells in there and they keep going after the snails i would see if you could trade some hermits for snails at a lfs. i have the skarlet hermits and they are so much nicer then the blue and black hermits.
dreaminmel
New member
mr.maroonsalty
New member
About the only good thing I can think of with hermit crabs is, you don't have to worry about flipping fallen snails right side up 
I have a healthy population of Collonista snails that seem to do a fine enough job, and haven't kept a hermit for years. I've seen it written that the sub-tropically collected snails don't have the longevity as the tropical varieties.
I have a healthy population of Collonista snails that seem to do a fine enough job, and haven't kept a hermit for years. I've seen it written that the sub-tropically collected snails don't have the longevity as the tropical varieties.boosted chemist
New member
I dont care they eat a snail everyonce in a while, i caught a couple hermits munching on my acans, i flushed their asses and didnt think twice. Now i have only one, but he is mildly behaved after being banished to the refuge a couple times.
cardiffgiant
Active member
Here is my current purchased CUC and when I last restocked any of them:
-Asterias - A handful, I stocked a dozen 3 years ago
-Turbos - 3, I stocked 2 6-8 months ago
-Nassarius - 2-3, I stocked 6 2-3 years ago
-Hermits - 2-3 each of red and blue, I stocked a dozen of each (what was I thinking?) 4 years ago
-Asterias - A handful, I stocked a dozen 3 years ago
-Turbos - 3, I stocked 2 6-8 months ago
-Nassarius - 2-3, I stocked 6 2-3 years ago
-Hermits - 2-3 each of red and blue, I stocked a dozen of each (what was I thinking?) 4 years ago
der_wille_zur_macht
Team RC
My take: It's nature at work.
I like hermits, so I'll probably always have a few in any given tank. I don't really ever remember them having a direct or significant impact on snail populations, but then again I don't exactly count snails on a regular basis. If I notice any type of critter getting low, it's not a big deal to spend a few bucks and replenish the stock.
That said, my cleanup crews are typically vastly smaller than the "advertised" sizes you see suggested at online vendors or in the forums. I've seen people suggest one critter (snail and/or hermit) per gallon. By contrast, in my old 125g, I probably had two dozen mixed snails and 4 or 5 hermits. The 55 I had before the 125 had maybe two or three hermits and maybe 5 snails. The 29g and two 30's I had before the 55 didn't have ANY cleanup crew in them.
I like hermits, so I'll probably always have a few in any given tank. I don't really ever remember them having a direct or significant impact on snail populations, but then again I don't exactly count snails on a regular basis. If I notice any type of critter getting low, it's not a big deal to spend a few bucks and replenish the stock.
That said, my cleanup crews are typically vastly smaller than the "advertised" sizes you see suggested at online vendors or in the forums. I've seen people suggest one critter (snail and/or hermit) per gallon. By contrast, in my old 125g, I probably had two dozen mixed snails and 4 or 5 hermits. The 55 I had before the 125 had maybe two or three hermits and maybe 5 snails. The 29g and two 30's I had before the 55 didn't have ANY cleanup crew in them.
mr.maroonsalty
New member
cardiffgiant
Active member
I haven't seen them do it, but they are opportunists. It wouldn't surprise me to hear of them going after bristle worms if they are hungry enough.
