Did you know that one of the main staples in a wild hermit crab's diet is feces? I know, pretty gross huh? But it makes sense. Hermit crabs are beach combers and as they travel across the beaches and the inland areas they consume all sorts of things and animal and bird feces make up a large part of that. The practice of consuming feces is called coprophagia.

Since I started crabbing every great once in awhile I hear stories of a crabber introducing some sort of feces in their tank. Turtle, guinea pig, and horse poo are the ones that I've heard of. The crab responses are usually very good.

Recently too, the practice of adding worm casting to the tank has become popular. Worm castings are basically a clean dirt but no less than 100% worm poop for it. Few people think of worm castings as true feces because it is honestly what makes up the dirt in your yard, but it provides much of the same benefits.

After some late night internet combing however, I ran across a product I'd never seen before, Seabird Guano. (Guano is a polite word for bird/bat feces). I passed on the bat guano because I couldn't see crabs venturing into cold, dark caves however, seabird guano is something that they would certainly encounter in their natural environment.

So did they like it? No word yet. As the weather shifts they've got all got underground as they normally do for a few weeks. I'm going to be doing a deep clean and installing some warming cable and I'll be back to update you on how it's received in a few weeks.

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There are a few types of nutrients that crabs should always have access to in addition to their regular food. These should be fairly straight forward items, not mixed with a bunch of other ingredients. They need to have something organic and plant based. Cork bark and cholla wood are great for this as it gives them something to climb as well as something to eat. Maple leave and branches also work well. Crabs also need a source of calcium available to them in the tank.

This is very easy to do, even if you don't have a lot of money. One of the easiest sources of calcium is a rinsed out egg shell. I would recommend that you hard boil an egg, give them the yolk and then get to work on the egg shell. A good rinsing should do fine. There is no need to grind it up unless you have an injured or sick crab. Crabs have pinchers for dismanteling food and it is something that will keep them busy and active. Just place the two egg halves right in the tank. As you can see from the one in the picture, the crabs have been quite active at nibbling the one that I put in there. You might be interested to note that the crab currently molting under my water dish has dragged the pieces of the shell that were left (maybe the size of a quarter) down into his molting cave.

hermit crabs" alt="Cuttlebone for hermit crabs" height="324" width="432" />Another easy source of calcium is a cuttlebone. These are pretty easy to find. Just look in the bird section of your local pet department. They are quite inexpensive, averaging a dollar or two. You can break them into chunks or deposit them whole in the tank. For a sick or ailing crab you can shave cuttlebone powder into their food for a calcium boost. As you can see, the crabs have been picking at this cuttlebone and have scored deep grooves in the top with their pinchers

hermit crab sitting on coral" alt="strawberry hermit crab sitting on coral" height="324" width="432" />Finally, I heartily recommend investing in a piece of natural dried coral. It's a great source of natural calcium. Crabs love it and they really have to work at getting pieces off of it. I've watched this piece get whittled down to half its size over the last 2 years. My big crabs love sitting on it, like this straw, my little crabs love hiding inside it.

Whatever you pick, your crabs will thank you. If they can't get calcium from a source you provide them, the next step is to start stripping your shells. Crabs can and will eat seashells when they are calcium deprived and that can be frustrating for a crab owner who invested money in them. It's completely preventable with something as easy as an eggshell. Your crabbies will thank you. (Or at least you can pretend they are thanking you when noone is looking.)

Well I have been working my tush off on a brand new website, don't worry, Naturally Crabby isn't going anywhere. Hermit Crab Cuisine has been an idea that I've had in the back of my mind for quite some time. I approached several people stating "wouldn't it be nice" if we had a site like this. Everyone agreed but noone was willing to do it. Finally I got tired of waiting and started building it myself. I've had a lot of great help and there is still a lot to go, but I'd love for you to go over and check it out. Feedback is always, always welcome.

Hermit Crab Cuisine