I'm not sure

[emmac350]

I don't have pictures of my 4 new crabs at the moment, but I'll try to describe the circumstances describing my acquiring them as well as what they look like.

I was in Panama City, FL for a weekend trip and was swimming with my boyfriend out on the beach. We swam out to a sandbar and he saw these little guys and caught me 4 of them. I kept them as he usually tells me "no way" whenever I try to buy hermies, and I've had roommates who kept them before. They are very small - the shells are about an inch or so long, periwinkle shells. They are about somewhere between the size of a dime and a penny, excluding shells. They have very little color on their legs and pinchers, although they do have a nice pink/red abdomen when they come out of the water. They are fairly active, although a bit weirded out by the whole coming home business. I have them in a decent-sized habitat, with water and sand from the beach where I caught them for now. I have caught a couple of them sticking their heads out of the water for several minutes at a time or climbing on top of each other and staying out of the water, and they're not very good at using bowls for the time being...most likely because of their size.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated, as the information on hermit crabs on the internet, other than the PP variety, is rather scarce. I'm trying to figure out if these guys are just baby hermies and will need land soon or if they are marine ones that will always have to be underwater. I want to give them a good life so they'll live a long and happy life.

[krabby_katie]

I'm not too sure, but I think that all the hermies caught in North America are marine hermies. Please don't quote me on this one though. Someone else will probably have to give you their opinion.

[HermieLove19]

marine hermit crabs have a very different look from land hermit crabs. if you google land hermit crabs and marine hermit crabs you may find a picture of what you found and whether or not its a land crab or marine crab. keep us posted!

[emmac350]

They were marine hermies. However, I wasn't able to get supplies in time for them, and so they passed away. I now have 2 land hermies (purple pinchers) and am getting a 3rd (I had bought 3, but one died during the first night in his new home) today.

Thanks for all your help!

[Cococrab]

I think they are either the marine variety if they were caught in the water. If you caught them on land, they are most likeley Ecuadorian (Pacific) land crabs due to their size and home land. If it is tannish-brown and its eyes are elongated, it is probably Ecuadorian. If its eyes are rounder and is reddish-purple, it is probably PP. Anyways, take care of your new friends!