I was working on my laptop late one night when I heard the neatest sound. It was almost like a single bird faintly chirping or a door slowly squeaking closed. My hermit crabs were chirping!
So, I started to wonder, do hermit crabs actually chirp? I did some research and found my answer:
Hermit crabs sometimes make small chirping sounds when they are stressed or uncomfortable. It’s a very faint tone that has been described as sounding like a squeaky door hinge, creaky bed, chirping bird, or croaking frog.
I had no idea my little hermit crabs made any sound at all, and was immediately curious. How do they make these sounds? Should I be concerned? Let’s dive into these questions and more to see what we can find out.
Hermit Crabs Chirp!
No, you are not going crazy! Hermit crabs do indeed chirp. I’ll never listen to a bird call the same way every again.
The video below is the sound of a little hermit crab chirping.
I guess you could say it doesn’t sound much like chirping, more like a small frog croaking. I just can’t think of a better word for it!
It’s a crazy little sound you just can’t forget. When you hear your hermit crabs chirp for the first time, especially if you’re holding them while they do so, you’ll see them as a whole different animal.
I think it enforces their stereotype as tiny, timid pets. Not only are they shy and cute, but they also give out adorable little cries when they need help.
I definitely did not expect my little crustaceans to be able to chirp. It sounded almost like a cross between a summer cicada and cricket chirp. It’s like nothing you’ve ever heard before.
What I want to know is how these little crabs were able to make such a unique sound.
How do Hermit Crabs Chirp
I wanted to know how my hermit crabs were able to make such a neat sound. So, I did what any good researcher would do; I Googled it.
Most assume that hermit crabs make noise through stridulation, the act of producing sound by rubbing together certain body parts.
This is most commonly associated with insects, but other animals are known to do this as well. For example, many species of fish, snakes, spiders, and hermit crabs have been known to stridulate.
Have you ever seen a cricket rub its wings together and make its chirping sound? That’s stridulation!
Hermit crabs do the same thing, but they rub their body parts together on the insides of their shells. That’s why some crab owners hear a more muffled sound toad sound instead of a high-pitched chirping noise.
What Does It Mean?
When I heard my little critters making their neat chirps, I started towards their tank to see them in action. When they heard me come close they decided to quiet.
I checked their tank and didn’t see anything out of the ordinary. I shrugged it off and went back to my desk. That was the last chirping I’ve ever heard my hermit crabs do.
I could only guess what it meant just from that interaction. Dazzle and Clarke were huddled up in a corner of my tank. My only guess is that one was bothering the other.
I asked several hermit crab owners if their crabs ever chirped. All of them have, and most agree that their crabs chirp whenever they feel agitated or unrest.
Hermit crabs chirping is basically their a signal saying, “Hey, don’t disturb me!”
A few situations that could cause chirping would be any sort of fight or crabby dispute. They might bicker over a shell or one crab might be crawling over another.
On the other hand, I’ve heard that crabs just chirp for no apparent reason. It’s like asking why a cat meows, there could be plenty of reasons why or no reason at all.
Either way, it’s a very neat sound that’s fun to hear.
If your hermit crabs ever do chirp, I would check on them and see if anything is noticeably wrong. Your crab could be stuck under a twig or losing an argument with another crab.
Other noises hermit crabs make
I can hear my hermit crabs clink their food bowl at night, knock over shells, fall off their plant they love to climb. Hermit crabs are very noisy pets at night and I would not put one next to your bed. I use ceramic food and water bowls, which causes their shells to clink when they climb over them.
Related Questions
Can hermit crabs hear?
Hermit crabs do not have eardrums, so they cannot hear audible sound like us humans. Instead, they feel vibrations to get a sense of their surroundings.
Is hermit crab chirping bad?
A hermit crab chirping is not necessarily bad. Sometimes they chirp whenever they feel agitated or unrest, but other times they chirp for no reason at all.