Hermit Crab Gender & Breeding

GENDER
​It is almost impossible to identify the gender of your crab. Some people say that you can identify genders by looking at a crab’s leg, while other people say that it’s a myth. If it’s hairy it’s a male, and if it’s not it’s a female. The most reliable way to determine the gender is to look at the base of the hermit crab’s walking legs and look for something called a ‘gonopod’. They look like two little dots at the point where the legs are about to join the body.

​BREEDING
​It is terribly difficult to breed hermit crabs in captivity. They must have immediate access to another tank that acts as a small ocean without the waves. Use a ten-gallon tank, add two inches of sand, and add a saltwater container since the mother crab will need to lay her eggs in the ‘sea’. Keep the temperature and the humidity at the right range and create a relaxing natural atmosphere. Find mature male and female crabs (they should be around the ‘medium’ size (see the ‘molting’ section for chart) and mate them in the spring or summer. Put them in the breeding enclosure. If they don’t mate, try another pair. Like I said, it is very difficult to breed crabs in the captivity and it is very rare for the crabs to feel like they are not being kept in a container and feel safe enough to approach each other with the right thoughts in mind. 

If they do decide to mate, let the eggs grow for about a month. The mother crab will then place them in the salt water and the should hatch soon after. Give them small live plankton and tiny shells (and be aware that baby hermit crabs eat their siblings). After about 40-60 days the crabs are old enough to come to land. Now you might have a lot of little baby crabs crawling around your habitat!