Keeping A Tropical Environment

Keeping a tropical environment for your land hermit crabs is a vital part in keeping these animals alive for longer than one month, as they are usually thought to live (of course, educated crabbers know that land hermit crabs can live for 30 years or more in captivity).

When I speak of a tropical environment, the temperature should be 80* Fahrenheit or higher and also above 80% relative humidity. These conditions can be difficult for some crabbers to achieved, and the equilibria of 80/80 is sometimes a difficult task. Luckily, heat and humidity work well together. When you have a good source of heat and moisture in the tank, your humidity will go up.

The first step in succeeding in obtaining optimum tropical conditions is to invest in a good humidity and temperature gauge. The one pictured to the right is Fluker's digital brand and I find that it works perfectly.

You can find cheaper analog (dialed gauges) that are cheaper than the one pictures to the right ($20), but these are often a bit inaccurate and worsen as time goes on.

Secondly, you'll want to have a moist substrate like sandcastle-constistency sand or moistened Eco-Earth. These substrates will aid in humidity. A heat source (such as an under tank heater) will work perfectly to give your tank the heat it needs. The larger the tank, the more expensive it will cost to heat it adequately. I am currently using three UTHs that are side-mounted to keep the 'tat warm.

With adequate heat sources, it shouldn't be hard to maintain a warm environment, but some crabbers have trouble with humidity.

You should have moist substrate, two large pools (one of freshwater and one of saltwater), and then another or more sources of moisture to help with the humidity.

Those sources can be moss pits, sponges (which I don't recommend because they can harbor bacteria), a bubbler to go inside of the pools, or a humidifer (like TropicAire brand).

If you have all of these moisture sources set-up, you should have no trouble keeping a humid and warm environment. It's important to remember to keep the top of the 'tat covered with something that will hold in the moisture. Plastic wrap, a plexi-glass sheet, or an aquarium hood with lighting (I recommend this) will keep the moisture in.

With added humidity, you'll find that crabs are more active. Unfortunately, the more humid it gets, the more prone you are to mold and the glass fogging up. Normal conditions should stay within the 80*/80% range, but having it higher or a little lower for a short amount of time is not only safe, but recommended.

Temperature and humidity variations will make your crabs hardier and healthier, plus it resembles the wild where nothing is stable.