Hermit crabs killing my Margarita snails

gam3ovr · 02/11/2014, 10:49 AM

Quick question (did some research but couldn't find the specific answer to my question) -

I have both in my JBJ30G along with two Emerald Crabs and about 10 smaller snails, and a larger Turbo Snail.

My wife likes watching the Margarita snails and is upset that the hermit crabs keep killing them only to find out they don't like their shells enough to actually live in them.

If one has to go, which should I keep? Of course my wife wants to keep the Margarita snails and get rid of the hermits.

Will the Emerald Crabs essentially take the place of the hermits in terms of digging out stuff from all the nooks and crannies? I realize they have larger pinchers and won't be able to get into ALL of the places that the hermits will get into.

Or is there another solution I'm not thinking of?

julie180 · 02/11/2014, 10:56 AM

You know what they say...Happy wife... Hermits can be bullies, I would say they should go.

MondoBongo · 02/11/2014, 11:17 AM

have you tried getting a whole mess of empty shells in a range of sizes and leaving them for your hermits to try on?

it probably won't stop it entirely, but if there is a glut of free vacancies around it might be more enticing to them than having to wrestle a snail for an open house.

HumbleFish · 02/11/2014, 11:38 AM

I'm not gonna say hermits do nothing, but IMO their downside far outweighs any upside. Just use a turkey baster or powerhead to blow out the nooks and crannies every now & then. I got rid of all mine during the last upgrade and haven't looked back. The only thing I miss about them is watching them crawl around.

syrinx · 02/11/2014, 12:10 PM

Hermit crabs=jerks on the halfshell

UMass14 · 02/11/2014, 02:20 PM

All my Turbo Snails are gone because of my new Hermit Crabs. I wasnt too happy about that because I have had those snails for a while. I have a ton of empty shells scattered around in my tank but it didnt stop the killings. On a brighter note the crabs dont bother my smaller snails.

gam3ovr · 02/11/2014, 08:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MondoBongo

have you tried getting a whole mess of empty shells in a range of sizes and leaving them for your hermits to try on?

it probably won't stop it entirely, but if there is a glut of free vacancies around it might be more enticing to them than having to wrestle a snail for an open house.

I didn't mention that but yes, I had about a dozen empty shells of varying sizes. Didn't keep them from from the murder spree

snorvich · 02/11/2014, 09:35 PM

Hermits kill snails. Having extra shells around simply means having extra shells. Won't do anything for the hermits, however. In general, do snails or hermits, not both.

davocean · 02/11/2014, 09:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by snorvich

Hermits kill snails. Having extra shells around simply means having extra shells. Won't do anything for the hermits, however. In general, do snails or hermits, not both.

Totally agree, crab free and happy here, snails are all I use.

Fishyoga · 02/25/2014, 12:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HumbleFish

I'm not gonna say hermits do nothing, but IMO their downside far outweighs any upside. Just use a turkey baster or powerhead to blow out the nooks and crannies every now & then. I got rid of all mine during the last upgrade and haven't looked back. The only thing I miss about them is watching them crawl around.

FWIW, and for any new reefers, I agree with opinions in this thread. Particularly with the turkey baster. Just started my second SW tank, with better advice, and avoided hermits altogether. I actually enjoy cleaning with the baster. Plug it directly over one hole, and watch all debris fly out of other holes!
That being said, my margarita snails tend to clean the rock more than the glass, leading my to scrape a little more often.

davocean · 02/25/2014, 12:57 PM

^^ A variety of snails will do wonders for different areas.
I keep a mix of ceriths, astrea, nassaurius, nerites.

Magickiwi · 02/25/2014, 01:29 PM

In hindsight I wish I did only snails but not knowing better I did both. Now it's just a game of replenishing when my snail population goes down. The nassarius snails seem to basically get wiped out constantly by the hermits, as did my cone snails.

If I set up again I won't be putting any hermits in, they do an awesome job on the surface of the sand but it is a pain in the rear always having to buy more snails.

snorvich · 02/25/2014, 01:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by syrinx

Hermit crabs=jerks on the halfshell

Unfortunately, this. Pick hermits or snails. If you pick both, you will have only hermits.

davocean · 02/25/2014, 01:38 PM

Fortunately hermits are not too difficult to remove, get a pair of grabbers and hit em when you see em if you too come to dislike having them.

joshua.jebe · 02/25/2014, 01:57 PM

i would personaly kep the hermits myself

02/11/2014, 10:49 AM	#1
gam3ovr Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2013 Posts: 90	Hermit crabs killing my Margarita snails Quick question (did some research but couldn't find the specific answer to my question) - I have both in my JBJ30G along with two Emerald Crabs and about 10 smaller snails, and a larger Turbo Snail. My wife likes watching the Margarita snails and is upset that the hermit crabs keep killing them only to find out they don't like their shells enough to actually live in them. If one has to go, which should I keep? Of course my wife wants to keep the Margarita snails and get rid of the hermits. Will the Emerald Crabs essentially take the place of the hermits in terms of digging out stuff from all the nooks and crannies? I realize they have larger pinchers and won't be able to get into ALL of the places that the hermits will get into. Or is there another solution I'm not thinking of?

02/11/2014, 11:17 AM	#3
MondoBongo Obligate Feeder Obsessed Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Pittsburgh, PA Posts: 4,061	have you tried getting a whole mess of empty shells in a range of sizes and leaving them for your hermits to try on? it probably won't stop it entirely, but if there is a glut of free vacancies around it might be more enticing to them than having to wrestle a snail for an open house. __________________ [Citation Needed] "You don't use science to show that you're right, you use science to become right" - xkcd Current Tank Info: A rectangular shaped money pit.

02/11/2014, 12:10 PM	#5
syrinx Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: champaign Posts: 3,160	Hermit crabs=jerks on the halfshell __________________ My views are based on 49years as an aquarist, 25 years as a pro reef consultant, 10 years of owning a LFS, and the results of thousands of customers tanks. But I am always learning.

02/11/2014, 09:35 PM	#8
snorvich Team RC member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Outlander Posts: 40,953 Blog Entries: 46	Hermits kill snails. Having extra shells around simply means having extra shells. Won't do anything for the hermits, however. In general, do snails or hermits, not both. __________________ Warmest regards, ~Steve~

02/25/2014, 12:57 PM	#11
davocean Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 14,655	^^ A variety of snails will do wonders for different areas. I keep a mix of ceriths, astrea, nassaurius, nerites. __________________ There's a fine line between owning your tank and your tank owning you! Current Tank Info: SCA 120g RR Starfire, Tunze silence 1073.02 return, 40g sump w/ fuge, SWC Extreme 160 cone skimmer,Geismann reflexx 4xT5, 2x Panorama Pro LED strips, Vortech MP40QD

02/11/2014, 10:56 AM	#2
julie180 Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Raymore, MO Posts: 2,556	You know what they say...Happy wife... Hermits can be bullies, I would say they should go.

02/11/2014, 11:38 AM	#4
HumbleFish Moved On Join Date: Feb 2013 Posts: 4,757	I'm not gonna say hermits do nothing, but IMO their downside far outweighs any upside. Just use a turkey baster or powerhead to blow out the nooks and crannies every now & then. I got rid of all mine during the last upgrade and haven't looked back. The only thing I miss about them is watching them crawl around.

02/11/2014, 02:20 PM	#6
UMass14 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: SO CAL Posts: 197	All my Turbo Snails are gone because of my new Hermit Crabs. I wasnt too happy about that because I have had those snails for a while. I have a ton of empty shells scattered around in my tank but it didnt stop the killings. On a brighter note the crabs dont bother my smaller snails.

02/25/2014, 01:29 PM	#12
Magickiwi Registered Member Join Date: May 2013 Posts: 39	In hindsight I wish I did only snails but not knowing better I did both. Now it's just a game of replenishing when my snail population goes down. The nassarius snails seem to basically get wiped out constantly by the hermits, as did my cone snails. If I set up again I won't be putting any hermits in, they do an awesome job on the surface of the sand but it is a pain in the rear always having to buy more snails.

02/25/2014, 01:38 PM	#14
davocean Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 14,655	Fortunately hermits are not too difficult to remove, get a pair of grabbers and hit em when you see em if you too come to dislike having them. __________________ There's a fine line between owning your tank and your tank owning you! Current Tank Info: SCA 120g RR Starfire, Tunze silence 1073.02 return, 40g sump w/ fuge, SWC Extreme 160 cone skimmer,Geismann reflexx 4xT5, 2x Panorama Pro LED strips, Vortech MP40QD

02/25/2014, 01:57 PM	#15
joshua.jebe Registered Member Join Date: May 2013 Posts: 50	i would personaly kep the hermits myself