“Crabbie” Hermit Crab Behavior

Just like humans and many other animals, hermit crabs have their own little quirks and personalities. Some of them are adventurous, and some are timid. Some are nice and social, and others are just, well…crabs. In regard to how hermit crabs react to each other, some behavior is typical. For example, many times when crabs come in contact with each other, they will crawl over each other. Sometimes one of the meeting crabs will wiggle and touch their feelers to the feelers of the other crabs. This is basically a way that hermit crabs sometimes say hello, or greet one another. Another way hermit crabs say hello to one another is a sort of pushing match. It seems that hermit crabs do not comprehend the concept of moving around objects. Whatever happens to appear in their way, the crab will attempt to go over it or dig under it. That is another reason why these little pushing contests occur. All these behaviors are completely normal and no cause for anxiety. If, however, you see one of these scenarios occurring and one crab grabs the other by the shell and shaking it, this could indicate what is known as a shell fight. Shell fights occasionally occur among both wild and pet hermit crabs. This type of fight can usually be detected by the crabs involved making a chirping sound. The motivation for this type of fight is that one crab wishes to confiscate the shell of the other crab. Usually, the attacker chases the victim out of his shell. Usually the loser moves waits while the winner moves into his shell then moves into the remaining shell. Typically neither of the parties is injured, and perhaps each might receive a better fitting shell.

While these behaviors are relatively harmless, some crabs are not friendly to other hermit crabs in their habitats with them. Both wild and pet hermit crabs have been known to kill each other. Most of the time, they kill each other by ripping each other limb from limb or ripping each other from their shells. Also sometimes they dig up molters who are buried and eat them while their exoskeletons are soft. Sometimes, when this has occurred, the owner of the crab finds scattered limbs all over the cage. Sometimes the crab is ripped out of its shell and survives. When this crab survives, most of the time it will die later from the trauma of the event. If the crab does survive and does not have its shell on, separate it from its attacker and disturb it as little as possible. If strong enough it should pull through on its own.

Shy or Fearful Crabs

Another crab behavior or personality trait that can show itself is if your hermit crab is too shy to come out of its shell. Many people complain of this. There are reasons that some crabs do not come out of their shells. The main reason is simply that the crab is afraid. Many crabs are purchased from pet stores. A lot of pet stores are cruel to crabs, and even if the pet store is humane, many people handle the crabs. If a crab was purchased from a pet store, chances are that the crab has been dropped, shaken, mishandled and/or traumatized. The best way to get a crab over this fear of being held is to hold the crab still in the flat palm of your hand. For the crab to come out of its shell and be comfortable, you may have to hold him or her for a long time. Do not fear, most scaredy-crabs will get over this fear and change their behavior over time.