Do Hermit Crabs Eat Seaweed?
Do hermit crabs eat seaweed is a popular question because this isn’t a food found for sale in the hermit crab section of pet stores. But why? In a coastal environment where hermit crabs live in the wild, seaweed naturally washes up onto the shore and is a part of their natural diet.
Seaweed is packed with lots of vitamins and minerals, and makes a great supplemental food for hermit crab pets. It’s like adding vitamins to their daily diet!
Hermit crabs are omnivores and scavengers and will try just about anything. However, there are three main facts about hermit crabs and food:
1. Hermit crabs need a wide variety of foods to maintain good health
2. Hermit crabs get bored with food if it’s the same thing over and over
3. ALL land hermit crabs come from a coastal ecosystem where seaweed exists!
If you want to feed seaweed as a supplemental healthy snack food to your hermit crab pets, here are a few suggestions to try. Make sure to always choose organic, pure seaweed without any preservatives or additives.
Note: never feed seaweed to your hermit crabs that you may find on a beach… chances are if you found it, you’re in a very populated area where the water and that seaweed clump probably has contaminants like boat oil residue, bacteria etc. Keep it healthy!
What types of seaweed do hermit crabs eat?
There are lots of types of types of seaweed and kelp that grows in oceans throughout the world. Most of them never wash up onto shore, so land hermit crabs would never have the opportunity to snack on them. Will hermit crabs like all types of seaweed? No, just like they won’t like all types of vegetables or store-bought hermit crab foods. (yes, they will like most meats and fruits though!)
There are certain types of seaweed that are commonly found washed up along beaches and shorelines where land hermit crabs live. These washed up seaweed clumps serve as snacks for land hermit crabs as well as lots of other coastal animals including birds, turtles, iguanas and more.
Many hermit crabs will get excited when they have seaweed in their habitats, because they associate it as a robust food source
- Sargassum
- Caulerpa (Umibudo)
- Nori
- Gracilaria
- Wakame
- Kombu
- Dulse
Sargassum Seaweed
Sargassum seaweed is very commonly found along beaches in Florida, the Caribbean islands and the Bahamas. This is where the hermit crab species Coenobita clypeatus comes from. Sargassum rafts and mats are large clumps that float along the ocean collecting all sorts of tiny ocean creatures like tiny shrimp, baby fish, snails and other creatures eventually washing up onto beaches and shorelines. Sargassum seaweed is bitter and abundant, two factors that make it not very appealing for companies to make a profitable product from. See my post Sargassum Seaweed is Good for Hermit Crabs and Coastal Ecosystems here!
Caulerpa aka Umibudo or seagrapes
Caulerpa (also known as umibudo or seagrapes) is a type of seaweed with a very high nutritional value.
There are different types of caulerpa, with the main one looking green cavier. It’s popular as a side dish or in salads especially in Japan and nearby Asian countries. It can be found in grocery stores sold as an Asian food.
Nori Seaweed
Nori is probably the most common type of seaweed sold commercially. It’s typically the greenish brown seaweed used to wrap sushi rolls. It looks greenish brown but it’s actually a type of red algae. In stores, it comes in sheets and is thin and crispy. It has a slight sweet and salty taste. It is also commonly used to feed reef aquarium fish and invertebrates, and makes a good snack food for land hermit crabs as well.
Nori is high in protein and contains essential amino acids, important for growth. It also contains Vitamins A, C, E as well as calcium, iodine and iron. It’s a great snack food for hermit crabs as it’s a dry food and something most hermit crabs enjoy snacking on, it’s affordable and easy to find online and in most grocery stores.
Wakame Seaweed
Wakame is a type of kelp, which is a type of brown seaweed often used in miso soup and seaweed salads. It has a mild, slightly sweet flavor and a soft, chewy texture. It most often comes dehydrated and found in the Asian food section of grocery stores.
Kombu Seaweed
Kombu is a type of brown kelp (seaweed) that comes dehydrated when sold commercially, and when rehydrated has a slightly slimy texture. Kombu isn’t as popular as other types of seaweed but it does have lots of healthy nutrients.
Dulse Seaweed
Dulse looks like a leafy red lettuce in the ocean, and has a very high nutrient content. When sold commercially, it typically comes as a dry powder or flake form. Many people say it has a “bacon” flavor, which is why hermit crabs are often attracted by it.
Seaweed makes a great supplemental snack food for hermit crab pets. IF you happen to have a reef or saltwater aquarium at home, try feeding some of the food you feed to your fish and invertebrates to your hermit crab pets!
Looking for more ideas on what to feed your hermit crab pets? See my post on hermit crab food and nutrition here.
Last update on 2024-05-08 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API