Care Level: Easy
Temperament:Â Peaceful
Reef Compatible:Â Yes
General Description: The Blue Leg Hermit Crab, sometimes referred to as the Dwarf Blue Leg Hermit Crab, is a peaceful and voracious scavenger you’ll want for your marine aquarium. Reaching a size of 1″ full grown, the Blue leg hermit crab can get into all of the small crevices to consume built up food particles and nuisance algae. They also inadvertently aerate the substrate as they scavenge and therefore, promote a healthier environment for beneficial bacterial growth. These crabs can be distinguished from their closely related counterpart, the Red Leg Hermit Crab (Clibanarius digueti), by their brightly colored red-banded blue legs.
Diet Requirements: Blue leg hermit crabs are omnivores. They will scavenge on various food leftover in the aquarium, in addition to consuming hair algae and cyanobacteria. If insufficient algae is present, we recommend supplementing sheet algae occasionally.
Tank Requirements: An established, minimum aquarium size of 10 gallons is recommended to house a Blue leg hermit crab. Maintaining stable water parameters is a component to the success of keeping this invertebrate; hermit crabs are intolerable of high nitrates. Creating crevices or caves with liverock will mimic the Blue leg hermit crab’s natural environment. Multiple individuals of Blue leg hermit crabs are encourged given their size. Like all hermit crabs, Blue leg hermit crabs live in the vacant shells of snails. To avoid a hermit crab taking a shell from a living snail, provide numerous empty shells of assorted sizes and shapes on the substrate. Recommended water conditions: 76-78° F, dKH 8-12, pH 8.1-8.4, salinity 1.024-1.026.
Purchase Size: 1/4” to 1/2″
Note: Your item may not look identical to the image provided due to variation within species. Purchase size is approximate.
