hermit crab setup" alt="90 gallon terrarium hermit crab setup" />When a person gets hermit crabs one of two thing happens. Either they keep them for awhile and tired of them and eventually pawn them off on friends and neighbors, or they start exhitibiting suspicious behavior. If you've spent a day driving around to all the petstores in town . . . . If, when you get there you look at every single crab in their tank . . . . And after that is done if you look at your companion and you both have already silently agreed that you're going on a roadtrip without further ado to start all over again two towns over . . . . Well, then your a crabaholic.

Crabaholics eventually will start thinking of upgrading their tank. This is why I always suggest a minimum tank starting size of 20 gallons. It gives you some time before you will need to upgrade. Some crabbers will take the big leap and create a colony tank which is any tank that is 50 gallons or larger.

Colony tanks have unique qualities that smaller tank owners don't face.  They aren't necessarily more difficult to care for, except when it comes to a deep clean, but you must think about tank maintenance in a different way. In a smaller tank you might have 2-5 crabs that you can recognize by shell and behavior. A colony tank might have anywhere from 20-100 crabs and individual recognition becomes difficult. There are always favorites and ones that are unique enough to stand out and be remembered but you will also have a group of crabs that blend together after 4 or 5 shell changes. I found this a hard transition to make. I like naming crabs and getting to know their personalities. I still have my favorites though

Molting is another issue that colony crab owners must contemplate. Personally, I let my crabs molt in the main tank. This means that of my current clan, 30-40% of them are up at any given time. I think this is one of the perks of a large colony. Smaller groups sometimes go through molting spurts that leave you watching an empty tank for weeks. In a colony, someone is always out and about doing something.

Tank layout is also important. A colony tank has room for larger and more diverse decorations. Even with a second level, smaller tanks are always fighting for space. My 90 gallon terrarium has room for two large pools as well as a large cave and lots of driftwood. Even with several food dishes and a substantial shell area there is still substantial room on the tank floor for walking. On the other hand, your colony tank needs to have an overabundance of hiding spots both at ground level and on the second level. Large and small opening hidey holes also give smaller crabs a place to hide where they feel secure. Large openings ensures that the larger crabs also have a place to hide. Make sure you larger water pools have a way for smaller crabs to exit. I use a large shell propped up in my largest pool.

Making the leap to a colony tank can be exciting. Making the adjustment isn't that hard, as long as you are thinking about it from the beginning. I recently inherited a 90 gallon fiberglass terrarium and was excited to get out many of the decorations I'd had to store over the years because my 35 gallon was just too small for them. I've also enjoyed seeing other hermit crabs owners colony tanks including Daethian's 150 gallon.

Do you have a colony tank? Would you like to put a picture of it up here? Drop me an email!