New shells were added to the Disco. Shells were examined by Clan. Shells were thrown into tunnel by clan. Shells were tried on by Clan. Some were discarded, some were kept.
Now I have no freaking clue who is who.
Success October 7, 2008
Ajax emerged from his molting den this morning and has already changed into a new shell, hooray! If he’s eaten well by the time I get home he (or she, I’ll try determining that tonight) will be reintroduced to the Disco and the rest of the Clan tonight.
My packages arrived yesterday. Sadly, all the shells I ordered are way too big for any of my Clan (I totally overestimated the size) and the night-glo bulb I ordered burned out 5 minutes after I turned it on. Sigh. The Crabbage Patch has got to love me.
Delivery! October 6, 2008
I just checked the tracking information for my orders last week, and I should have two shiny new packages waiting for me when I get home tonight. Yay!
Obsession October 4, 2008
Ok, I admit it. I am disturbingly invested in the lives and times of my hermit crabs. Y’all are just going to have to deal.
I had a great time watching them last night. There was a bit of confusion for a while because one of the newbies, Constantine, changed shells and I didn’t notice. Now I have three crabs in very similar shells, and if Ulysses hadn’t just molted (and is now all fuzzy and hairy and has wee little black toenails) I would have an even harder time telling them apart. But back to topic.
I got to watch U changes shells several times under full lighting –most of the changes have been under the moonglow bulb, and therefore very dim and hard to see– and it never ceases to entertain me. When they finally plop their little pasty crab butts into a new shell… so cool. Think of it like a paraplegic who has built his upper body to compensate for the lack of leg use transferring himself from chair to chair; it’s a similar concept. The crab uses his pincers and walking legs to maneuver the new shell into just the right position, then heaves its lower body and tiny lower legs (the ones that grasp the interior of the shell to keep it on) into the opening of the new shell. For being so commonplace, it’s just amazing.
Since he came up from his molt, Ulysses has been really active and it’s a nice change in the Disco. Last night I found him perched way at the top of the rock hidey, balanced rather precariously right under the night bulb. Hector was trundling about on the ground, and before I got too tired to stay awake any longer, Constantine made an appearance in his second new shell since I bought him on Monday (verifying that yes, he did switch again when I wasn’t looking). Nero, the other newbie, was hiding out and probably destressing. Ajax is still chilling in ISO, and I’m waiting for him to come up at any time. He’ll have been dug under for a month next week, so while that’s about average for a crab his size, I’m impatient. I want him back in the Disco!
I’ve had trouble keeping the tank temperature constant with the cooler weather we’ve been having, so I have two higher-wattage bulbs on order. I also placed an order for some good-quality food and a handful of new shells from The Crabbage Patch. Ulysses isn’t happy with any of the current shell offerings, and his current one may be feeling a little tight after his molt. Hopefully he’ll like one of the new ones, if nothing else so I can tell them all apart easier!
I’m really not this much of a nerd usually, I swear.
