Ocypode quadrata (Ghost Crabs)

[Toxoderidae]

Been keeping this small colony for a little over a month or two. All 3 - 5 month old crabs, can grow to be around 6 or 7'' in diameter including legs, and will live around 3 years. Has anyone else tried keeping these guys?

Will post more pictures as I can. Very secretive crabs.

They are currently all about 2'' in diameter including legs, and are in a 15gallon long with around 8'' deep pure sand to burrow in. Most of the sand was collected from the beach they were found at. The rest I got at my local aquaria store.

 

[SeaCucumberFan]

?? There isn't even a report button!

 

[Toxoderidae]

?? There isn't even a report button!

Bottom left, under the username.

 

[SeaCucumberFan]

When I visited this the post was completely empty

 

[Toxoderidae]

Weird. Anyway, here's some pictures of the crabs.

 

[Calappidae]

Wow thats amazing.

I've always wanted to keep these guys but unforunately they're hard to get a hold of. I think the beaches they're from have wildlife restrictions so you can't just drive down there, take some, and leave, but if you live near the beach they're easy to catch.

 

[Toxoderidae]

Wow thats amazing.

I've always wanted to keep these guys but unforunately they're hard to get a hold of. I think the beaches they're from have wildlife restrictions so you can't just drive down there, take some, and leave, but if you live near the beach they're easy to catch.

I keep in pretty good touch with my fish and wildlife, and as long as A. the beach they're living in isn't already protected and B. they're just overflowingly common, so common they are actually a problem I'm allowed to legally take them. I catch mine in Treasure Island FL, where they're literally used as fishing bait because there are so many, they're actually really causing problems for the turtle nesting there. I only take hatchlings to babies, so that way I'm not really damaging the ecosystem.

 

[sam.basye]

Took this pic a couple weeks ago in SC. Biggest one I've seen at about 8".




What do yours do all day? Are they out and about or just sit in their burrows? Neat crabs for sure.

 

[SeaCucumberFan]

Can they breathe air?

 

[Toxoderidae]

Can they breathe air?

They require seawater to breathe, but yes, as long as the gills are moist, they can breathe oxygen fine. In Australia, Golden ghost crabs have been found almost 1km away from any beach, inland. Ghost crabs are loved by biologists for being walking evolutionary pieces, just by generation from 100 years ago to today you can see minor changes that make a huge difference with this crabs.

 

[Toxoderidae]

Took this pic a couple weeks ago in SC. Biggest one I've seen at about 8".




What do yours do all day? Are they out and about or just sit in their burrows? Neat crabs for sure.

1 of them comes out all the time, his name is todd (no capital because he is a small, weak crab) and he is always digging, saw him dig 12 burrows in one night, just to dig a 13th and live in that one. They spend all day and some of the night in the burrows, as they are still on that biological schedule they were on the beach. (in June, when I caught them) it stayed bright 'till 9:30, and wasn't dark until 10. The sand wasn't cool enough until around 10:30-45, but they would had to wait for the adults to finish their nightly activities, so 3 - 5 AM is when I see them most.

 

[sam.basye]

Pretty cool. It's like having a giant ant farm except with crabs. Lol

Curious to the sand. Do you moisten it with saltwater? Looks damp in pics.

What do you feed them? What do they eat in the wild?


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[SeaCucumberFan]

I've kept hermits before but I've never kept (terrestrial) crabs. What do you feed them?

 

[Toxoderidae]

Pretty cool. It's like having a giant ant farm except with crabs. Lol

Curious to the sand. Do you moisten it with saltwater? Looks damp in pics.

What do you feed them? What do they eat in the wild?


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Yes, I do moisten the sand with seawater so they can stay in. I simply overflow the waterdish and mist the enclosure with seawater every now and then. I feed them carrots, lettuce, strawberries, grapes, crickets, calcium supplement and commercial crab food.

 

[sam.basye]

Yes, I do moisten the sand with seawater so they can stay in. I simply overflow the waterdish and mist the enclosure with seawater every now and then. I feed them carrots, lettuce, strawberries, grapes, crickets, calcium supplement and commercial crab food.

Sounds like you've got it all figured out.

Now all you're missing is me kicking sand down the hole and an filling it in. Lol I'm sure ghost crabs everywhere hate me for it.


Not in the near future, but at some point I plan on building a fiddler crab biotope with a beach and small wave action in a long tank.

 

[Toxoderidae]

Sounds like you've got it all figured out.

Now all you're missing is me kicking sand down the hole and an filling it in. Lol I'm sure ghost crabs everywhere hate me for it.


Not in the near future, but at some point I plan on building a fiddler crab biotope with a beach and small wave action in a long tank.

The biggest issue is I'm kind of paving the road for these guys. Aside from professors and researchers (like gulfspecimen) I'm really the only one attempting to keep these guys. A lot of work at times for animals that if you catch them too old, live as long as a mantis.

 

[Calappidae]

Do you regulate the temperature of their water/sand?

I remember when I had halloween moon crabs the sand felt chilling and I used to have to put on a timer heat lamp to keep the sand warm like it would be under the sun.

 

[sam.basye]

How's the ghost crab tank doing??