Terrarium for Hermit Crabs: Creating a Smart, Healthy Habitat
Hermit crabs are low-maintenance pets once you provide a smart, healthy habitat for them. There are many choices for enclosures but terrariums often make the best type of habitat over a traditional glass aquarium (tank).
In this article, I’ll delve into the world of hermit crab terrariums, exploring their benefits, differences from traditional tanks, and why they’re a smart choice for your hermit crab pets.
What is a Terrarium for Hermit Crabs?
A terrarium for hermit crabs is a controlled environment that can be created to mimic their natural habitat more easily than a tank or most other types of enclosures.
A more appropriate term for this is “vivarium”, which is defined as an enclosure designed to simulate a specific habitat, providing appropriate conditions for the inhabitant.
However, “vivarium” isn’t currently a commonly used word… and “terrarium” , though usually a term to used more often for housing plants than small animals, applies.
A hermit crab typically consists of a glass or acrylic enclosure with a top or side panel made of wire mesh for good ventilation. Terrariums are typically made and marketed for reptiles and other small pets like chameleons and lizards.
They are designed to house these small pets that require safety and some amount of humidity while offering them space to explore, climb, and burrow. They are more friendly to controlling the parameters needed to keep live plants, moving water, live small animals in… versus an aquarium that is foremost manufactured to contain fish and aquatic life.
The smart terrariums are typically built with 1 or 2 large front opening panels that give easy access to the whole interior. The bottom is typically a solid glass enclosure below the front opening panel(s) to hold a significant amount of substrate. *Remember, hermit crabs need deep substrate the larger they grow. Some terrariums made for reptiles have a bottom that will not be deep enough to hold enough substrate for your hermit crabs. This bottom substrate section is super important to consider when choosing the best size terrarium.
Difference Between a Hermit Crab Tank and a Hermit Crab Terrarium
1. Environmental Complexity
Hermit Crab Tank: Tanks often prioritize containment, most often 4 solid side glass panels. A tank provides a basic space to hold essentials like substrate and water bowls, and allows for a top to be added. Ventilation is limited to that top chosen; a wire mesh top is best for hermit crabs as it allows for needed ventilation. Parameters of temperature and humidity are relatively easy to control in an enclosed glass tank.
Hermit Crab Terrarium: Terrariums focus on creating a more naturalistic environment with varying landscapes, climbing structures, and hiding spots. These terrariums come in dimensions that are better for hermit crabs, can be easier to control parameters like temperature and humidity while allowing good ventilation, often come with holes for electrical cords and more.
2. Engagement and Enrichment
Hermit Crab Tank: Tanks may lack diverse elements, leading to boredom and stress for your pets. Also, the most common size of tank most new hermit crab owners choose is a 10 gallon tank, which hermit crabs soon outgrow. Hermit crabs need to explore and climb, and the regular 10 and 20 gallon tank dimensions don’t allow much space for climbing up vertically, something most species of hermit crabs do in the wild.
Hermit Crab Terrarium: Terrariums that are built for reptiles typically open in front, allowing for a more creative way to add climbing elements and other stimulation. They usually include a wire mesh top or side panel for better ventilation, holes for electrical cords to feed through, and a solid section at the bottom to hold a significant amount of substrate.
3. Aesthetic Appeal
Hermit Crab Tank: Tanks can often lack visual appeal, because of the dimensions and lack of easy access for adding custom built backgrounds, climbing walls and other visually attractive elements for your hermit crabs AND FOR YOU!
Hermit Crab Terrarium: Terrariums are built to allow for greater access to the inside and thus, they are easier to landscape and add visually appealing elements like climbing vines, climbing walls, mountains and caves. By adding a rainforest, beach, mangrove or other natural looking look to the habitat, it becomes a focal point in your home. Add landscaping including plants, hanging coconut-hideaways, wood ladders, lighting… to create a beautiful habitat you’ll love to show off!
Recommended Sizes of Terrariums for Hermit Crab pets
Choosing the right size terrarium is crucial for your hermit crab’s comfort and well-being.
10 gallon tanks are the minimum size for 2-3 very small, young hermit crabs. And they WILL quickly outgrow this size enclosure!
Compared to most reptile terrariums, a typical 10 gallon tank is very, very small. The most common dimensions of a typical 10 gallon tank are approximately 10″ x 20″ x 12″ high.
This is the minimum size enclosure for 2-3 very small young hermit crabs. They WILL grow bigger and you’ll need to invest in a larger enclosure.
Hermit crabs can easily live more than 20 years in captivity if they are provided with basic needs.
Why not invest in a large habitat for them now, and create it to be a fantastic natural habitat that you AND your hermit crabs will enjoy for many years!
Additional Tips for Terrarium Enclosures
These terrariums can be much more expensive than a simple glass aquarium. If you have a limited budget, there ARE options!
Are you a little crafty? Do you have the patience to try something new? Make a HERMIT CRAB HABITAT HACK!
Look to Ikea for the best options. Here are two ideas for you: the Ikea Detolf is $79 and TALL! By adding lots of connected levels, your hermit crabs will love climbing up and down (like they do in the wild!).
Since the base is 16″ x 16″, there is limited surface area so… make sure to only keep a a few hermit crabs in this one (not a whole big colony!).
First plan for the 8 ESSENTIAL HERMIT CRAB HABITAT NEEDS. Then et creative!
Tip: reserve the bottom level for substrate and one water bowl. Put the 2nd water bowl on another level. Put food on a higher level. Add a hanging coconut hideaway, lots of driftwood and tree branches.
Click over to our Ikea Milsbo (largest) hermit crab terrarium hack for the materials, foam, paints, sealers, concrete and other materials we used.
We break down all the costs and steps we took. You do NOT need a habitat this large! But it will give you ideas on how you can improve the enclosure that you do have!
Tip: if you order a hanging coconut hideaway with rope ladder, make sure to pick on that has the wood ladder rungs close together, with the last one close to the circle opening of the coconut. Why? Some are made too far apart and your smaller hermies will have a difficult time climbing into it. This one (Niteangel) is the one we have, shown in the photos found on this website.
Conclusion
Last update on 2024-04-27 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API