snails and hermits....???
- Thread starter drea
- Start date
granny
Member
Why do people even buy hermits??? I personally detest them in a tank. They are clumsy, need tons of shells littering your substrate to move around in, or just kill your snails for their shells. They get large, sometimes aggressive etc. etc. There are so many safer, cuter, smaller inverts to populate your tank with. I vote keep the snails and ditch the hermits. Maybe you can set up a tank just for them!!
jerthunter
Active Member
I hate my blue leg hermits. They are mean and kill my nassarius snails just for fun. Even if they just killed one they will kill another just to try on a new outfit. I haven't had any problems with scarlet hermits so from now on I will not buy blue legs. I've been thinking about trying Hawaiian Left hand hermits. They look pretty cool and are probably to big to go after Nassarius snails...
mrdc
Active Member
I have come to hate the hermits!! I gave away several and put the big ones in my QT tank. I'm tired of seeing crabs sporting new snail shells especially when I have plenty of empty shells laying around. I do have one big red crab which is very timid and doesn't bother anything. Maybe his size is why he doesn't bother the snails since he is bigger than them all.
wax32
Active Member
Originally Posted by alyssia
Mine still kill my snails even when I have a ton of shells.
EXACTLY!
If your hermits are killing your snails it is because they are HUNGRY, not looking for a new condo.
Hungry hermits are hungry for one of two reasons:
1. Your tank is ultra clean. (Yeah right!)
2. You have too many hermits and there is just not enough food to go around.
So, what can a person do?
1. Feed your hermits specifically. (Not the best choice, as this just adds more wastes to your tank.)
2. Get rid of a few.
Hope this helps!
wax32
Active Member
Awesome!
I love hermit crabs and I hate when they get a bad rap for doing what they naturally do. Keep them well fed (by limiting how many are in the tank) and they are relatively model citizens. I have 17 hermits in my 70 and not one has ever killed a snail. Notice I said 17 and not "1 per 2 gallons" or something crazy like that!
I love hermit crabs and I hate when they get a bad rap for doing what they naturally do. Keep them well fed (by limiting how many are in the tank) and they are relatively model citizens. I have 17 hermits in my 70 and not one has ever killed a snail. Notice I said 17 and not "1 per 2 gallons" or something crazy like that!
wax32
Active Member
Most reef-safe hermits won't live in conch shells, the opening is too narrow. Was this a crab from the Dardanus genus? They like narrow shells and are for sure not reef safe.
One thing people forget is that Astraea snails sometimes fall of the glass or rock (usually because they are sick from improper acclimation) and when they can't right themselves hermits for sure aren't going to pass up easy prey like that! It would be like us passing up a free seafood buffet!
One thing people forget is that Astraea snails sometimes fall of the glass or rock (usually because they are sick from improper acclimation) and when they can't right themselves hermits for sure aren't going to pass up easy prey like that! It would be like us passing up a free seafood buffet!
mrdc
Active Member
Originally Posted by wax32
Most reef-safe hermits won't live in conch shells, the opening is too narrow. Was this a crab from the Dardanus genus? They like narrow shells and are for sure not reef safe.
One thing people forget is that Astraea snails sometimes fall of the glass or rock (usually because they are sick from improper acclimation) and when they can't right themselves hermits for sure aren't going to pass up easy prey like that! It would be like us passing up a free seafood buffet!
The hermit was just an ugly brown hermit. I was told later that he should not have been in the reef tank. Stupid LFS
I have another conch in now and it does one helluva job on the sand. Nothing bothers him.
Most reef-safe hermits won't live in conch shells, the opening is too narrow. Was this a crab from the Dardanus genus? They like narrow shells and are for sure not reef safe.
One thing people forget is that Astraea snails sometimes fall of the glass or rock (usually because they are sick from improper acclimation) and when they can't right themselves hermits for sure aren't going to pass up easy prey like that! It would be like us passing up a free seafood buffet!
The hermit was just an ugly brown hermit. I was told later that he should not have been in the reef tank. Stupid LFS
I have another conch in now and it does one helluva job on the sand. Nothing bothers him.