Hermit crabs ok with ritteri?

[tylorarm]

Everyone bags on hermits in regards to snails and corals. I've had a bunch for years and no complaints. Never seen them damage a coral and I've had them on double-secret probation for years. They do wear snail shells though, go figure. That said, i've noticed a few of my larger blue-knuckle hermits, around 2", get a bit too close for comfort to my ritteri. When they get this close they don't seem to be aggressive towards the ritteri, seem more to be picking and cleaning near the base. As soon as they get in this restricted area the nem's tenticles latch on to the shell, the perc's (small but testy) attack and the crabs retreat. Looks more like the nem wants to eat the crab than vise vera. Day time seems ok ,however, I'm more worried about night time when the clowns are in their beds. Are hermits a true threat to a small (6") ritteri?

 

[elegance coral]

I would not trust large hermits around my Ritteri. With healthy Ritteri's being so rare in the hobby, I would get rid of the hermits. At least the large ones.

 

[Flighty]

I have never had problems with them. I have several different kinds, but none very large.