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View Full Version : Confusion, maybe a molting?



Ram_Puppy
Fri, 12th Mar 2004, 10:04 AM
Hey guys, the pics of my forever (edit:sorry, no pics today, no time to FTP up to my server.) in coming 30 gallon hex... it's still coming up, and needs about 20 pounds more live rock for me to be happy.... and I am still building the canopy, so it is lit off filtered sunlight and a cheesy fresh water light for now... next week the power compacts go up.

Oh, and as for my confusion: as of yesterday morning, my population consisted of one electric blue, and one Emerald Mithrax. Yesterday noon time I added two electric orange crabs (from marshall islands, orange and black, not orance and brown like live aquaria.) another electric blue, 6 dwarf zebra hermits, and 3 trochus grazers... should have got more grazers... they are AWESOME... anyhow...

Yesterday my big electric blue, who my wife has named bruiser, came right up to the biggest electric orange and started scuffling with him, I assume this was territorial. I put them on opposite sides of the tank with the big live rock seperating them, but they seemed to find their way back to one another in minutes... no biggie. I went to work, didn't get home till late, turned on the lights this morning, and found, what APPEARS to be a dead orange crab. I was a little sad, thee was another one right there by the 'body'... I figured he was the survivor. I checked around the tank to see if any more hijinks had occured, and I found the other electric blue just fine, tucked up in his shell, (i can see his legs) and of course bruiser is out on his perch up front surveying his invertebrate kingdom, but to my suprise, I found another electric orange in a burrow dug out under the live rock... so this means one of them molted right? no other explanation. cool. The exo-skeleton just looked a little to fleshy for to believe...

so, should I throw and empty shell in there now? I assume after molting this guy is going to be on the prowl for a new home.... don't want him stealing it.

Instar
Fri, 12th Mar 2004, 10:56 AM
Electric what? Crabs? Hermit crabs? for hermits, keep empty shells in there for them.

Ram_Puppy
Fri, 12th Mar 2004, 01:53 PM
sorry, yes, electric blue and orange hermits. :)

and I bought some empty shells today from CB pets, got about 3 different sizes... hopefully if anyone wants to upgrade in the near future, they will choose one of those.