Hitchhiker or molting ?

[Matt 501]

I bought some more live rock a couple of days ago and this morning I found a dead electric blue hermit without it's shell. Both my electric blue hermits are fine and are scurrying around my tank in their normal unique style, so could this be a hitchhiker or has one of my crabs molted ??

 

[melosu58]

My guess is one of them molted.

 

[Matt 501]

It is very "meaty" and the claws are solid, unlike a molting. Which led me to thinking hitchhiker.

 

[Henry405]

I saw the molting of one of my red legged hermits and it looked like something pulled it out of its shell. I didn't examine it closely, but if it is a hitch hiker, good find! Can you count up all of your electric blues? I only have a few hermits so I'm always able to verify if they're all safe

 

[carey]

Hermit crabs molt? Sorry to jump in LOL. I've found numerous "dead" crabs over the last few months and just assumed they were dead.

 

[Henry405]

Hermit crabs molt? Sorry to jump in LOL. I've found numerous "dead" crabs over the last few months and just assumed they were dead.

Well, I dont have 100+ little critters in my tank so I can account for them all =P. Whenever I see a molting, I would go find my 3 small hermits and they would still always be there. I also saw my large hermit molt recently. It changed from a dark red to orange

 

[carey]

Thanks Henry, love learning new stuff.

 

[Gti_Leo]

yeah hermits molt as to most inverts with an exoskeleton