How do you know if a hermit crab is having babies?

Question

My friends hermit crabs were doing IT with eachother and I was just wondering how to tell if the girl crab is gonna have babies. My friend knows what to do when your crab is gonna lay eggs, but she refuses to do it because she doesn't know if her crab is gonna have babies or not. PLEASE HELP US!!!

Answer 1

Step1   Determine, as best you can, if your hermit crab is female. Females have two, pinhole-sized openings--called gonopores--on the underside of their third set of walking legs. They can only be seen if the hermit crab extends far out of its shell.

Step2   Consider whether your crabs have been in contact with males. If you have a tank of hermit crabs--and they are social creatures--make sure to confirm that there`s at least one male in the batch.

Step3   Keep an eye out for an accumulation of brick red eggs along the left side of her abdomen. Monitor these eggs for up to a month. They should change from their original brick red color to a dark gray.

Step4   Provide some salt water, in which your hermit crab can lay her eggs when the time comes. Hermit crabs lay their eggs in the ocean, not in a fish tank.

Step5   Understand that hermit crabs are almost impossible to breed in captivity. Although the eggs will burst after contact with salt water, the larvae will probably die for lack of food and proper conditions.