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Honorary Crabs

i love my roaches

[crustacean-a-day]

Pirate crabs!

Scientific name: Hainanpotamon rubrum

Origin: Vietnam

Common names: Pirate crab, Hainan potamon crab

After seeing "pirate crabs" for sale at my local pet store, I tried to research them, but couldn't find anything about them other than a handful of sites selling them. After some digging, I've discovered that the crabs often sold as "pirate crabs" are most likely Hainanpotamon rubrum.

Pirate crabs need both land and water in their enclosure and do best with substrate deep enough to bury in. They need to be completely submerged in water to molt, so they should have water deep enough for this available. These crabs are carnivorous and can eat feeder insects and crab pellets.

I've seen mixed opinions on these crabs' temperments, with some sites saying they can be housed together or even with fish, but others saying they are extremely aggressive. If anyone has experience with these crabs please let me know!

I found one case of successful breeding in captivity, but it seems that most of the pirate crabs on the market are wild-caught.

The crabs available at my local pet store:

Sources:

https://tud.qucosa.de/api/qucosa%3A29079/attachment/ATT-0/?L=1