RussianBoy Posted January 23, 2011 Share Posted January 23, 2011 So i found a body of my emerald crab, now I don't know if he is dead or it is a molt. When I put a flashlight under it, I don't see anything like guts, but I don't understand how he could get out of it in one piece, it makes no sense, also I have not seen him for a few days since I found it. I still have it but I don't want to crush it because it's like a perfect little crab and even stands on it's own..kinda cool...can anyone tell me more about it? Link to comment
kgoldy Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 They tear a hole in the back to crawl out of... Look for the tear. It sounds like a molt to me. Not the same species, but this will show you what they do - Link to comment
Durbelethwen Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 I have an emerald crab that came into my tank as a hitchhiker. The one time that I know of that he molted, his discarded shell was translucent. It was rather interesting to see because when I first spotted the shell it was still almost completely intact. Link to comment
RussianBoy Posted January 24, 2011 Author Share Posted January 24, 2011 the shell feels very light and airy, not transparent however, just looks like a crab. I don't think he is in it, but I have not seen him in a few days, and am worried he was the whole reason I got into salt water originally. I was going to do fiddler crabs and somehow ended up in SW lol reefing is like meth.... Link to comment
qwiksilver711 Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 the shell feels very light and airy, not transparent however, just looks like a crab. I don't think he is in it, but I have not seen him in a few days, and am worried he was the whole reason I got into salt water originally. I was going to do fiddler crabs and somehow ended up in SW lol reefing is like meth.... another crime scene? Link to comment
RussianBoy Posted January 24, 2011 Author Share Posted January 24, 2011 oh hey my council is here, did u want a pic of the shell? Link to comment
qwiksilver711 Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 oh hey my council is here, did u want a pic of the shell? of course we do! Link to comment
RussianBoy Posted January 24, 2011 Author Share Posted January 24, 2011 this is batty the emerald crab... well I hope not actually him cause I have not seen him in a few days, hopefully hiding and hardening somewhere. Link to comment
qwiksilver711 Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 this is batty the emerald crab... well I hope not actually him cause I have not seen him in a few days, hopefully hiding and hardening somewhere. what does the back end look like, is there a hole in it? maybe the ghost of the firefish scared him to death Link to comment
RussianBoy Posted January 24, 2011 Author Share Posted January 24, 2011 well he is all hard now, I didn't look to see if there was a hole when it was fresh, my wife did notice he has a little belly flap that would fold down.... Link to comment
qwiksilver711 Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 well he is all hard now, I didn't look to see if there was a hole when it was fresh, my wife did notice he has a little belly flap that would fold down.... hmmm, i'd keep that thing around, good for practical jokes Link to comment
RussianBoy Posted January 24, 2011 Author Share Posted January 24, 2011 I want to buy a resin kit, and cast him inside, would be very cool, probably will either way it will be cool. Link to comment
justinT Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 I had a bubblealgae problem and bought two, and i thought the smaller one shed his shell, but I haven't seen him since I threw away the "shell" :-( RIP crabby... Link to comment
RussianBoy Posted January 24, 2011 Author Share Posted January 24, 2011 am I the only one who gets attached to every pet? Even my crabs? Link to comment
pj86 Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 Nah, I lost my emerald crab a few days ago and it was a bummer, I expected him to live for a few years. Then I did some research and they don't have a long life span. Link to comment
jfarabaugh Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 this is batty the emerald crab... well I hope not actually him cause I have not seen him in a few days, hopefully hiding and hardening somewhere. I would say that is your crab and not a molt...sorry the molt should be very flexible and light (from my experience) and not able to stand up like that. Link to comment
GokesReef Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 My emerald hasn't molted yet, that I've seen, but having seen a number of shrimp and hermit molts.. that doesn't look like one Link to comment
anemone fan Posted January 24, 2011 Share Posted January 24, 2011 well he is all hard now, I didn't look to see if there was a hole when it was fresh, my wife did notice he has a little belly flap that would fold down.... If the telson aka belly flap was loose then more than likely it was a molt, the molts will harden out of water. Your crab probably won't be out for a couple days, if you really are curious deconstruct and find em, I bet you he is in there. I've worked with green crabs and Hemigrapsus on the east coast and that is how both of them molt, they come out the bottom of their shell. and then find a quiet place to harder their new skeleton. Link to comment
RussianBoy Posted January 25, 2011 Author Share Posted January 25, 2011 crushed the exo, seems to be empty although I don't really know the difference, yes the belly flap was loose, but still have not seen him Link to comment
RussianBoy Posted January 26, 2011 Author Share Posted January 26, 2011 still no sign starting to loose hope Link to comment
Grendel0501 Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 crushed the exo, seems to be empty although I don't really know the difference, yes the belly flap was loose, but still have not seen him Autopsy by hammer. Link to comment
RussianBoy Posted January 26, 2011 Author Share Posted January 26, 2011 Autopsy by hammer. we did open the shell, and it sure seemed empty to me, it dried for a day out of the tank, but there was nothing gooey or gross inside at all just space, but I am no crab inside expert, also the belly flap was loose when we picked it out of the tank. Link to comment
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