Emerald crab suddenly died

serbusfish · 09/25/2015, 02:35 PM

My Emerald crab has gone and died on me. He wasnt fully grown and has been in my tank for around 2 months. I found him upside on the sand bed this morning. Does anyone know what might have caused this? I dont think he starved because on Wednesday I lost my McCoskers Wrasse and I saw him eating the body (I dont think the McCoskers was eating properly).

Dkuhlmann · 09/25/2015, 02:39 PM

It more than likely shed it's shell. They do that periodically to grow. Grab the shell at the back side and see if it opens towards the eyes. It should be like it's hinged. For some reason emerald crabs appear to be themselves when they shed and the shed feels solid.x

He should be out and about tomorrow as usual. They hide for about 24 hours more or less to let the new shell harden. They are completely soft like jelly when they first come out of their shell.

I have had an emerald crab kill fish, so I'd not be surprised if it killed your wrasse. My crab killed two royal gramma they get them where they sleep.

09/25/2015, 02:35 PM	#1
serbusfish Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2015 Posts: 710	Emerald crab suddenly died My Emerald crab has gone and died on me. He wasnt fully grown and has been in my tank for around 2 months. I found him upside on the sand bed this morning. Does anyone know what might have caused this? I dont think he starved because on Wednesday I lost my McCoskers Wrasse and I saw him eating the body (I dont think the McCoskers was eating properly). __________________ 75 Gallon mixed Reef / Ocellaris Clownfish, Firefish, Royal Gramma, Bangaii Cardinal, Yellow Tang, Coral Beauty, Allen's Damselfish. Progress thread: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.p

09/25/2015, 02:39 PM	#2
Dkuhlmann Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: NW Iowa Posts: 8,823	It more than likely shed it's shell. They do that periodically to grow. Grab the shell at the back side and see if it opens towards the eyes. It should be like it's hinged. For some reason emerald crabs appear to be themselves when they shed and the shed feels solid.x He should be out and about tomorrow as usual. They hide for about 24 hours more or less to let the new shell harden. They are completely soft like jelly when they first come out of their shell. I have had an emerald crab kill fish, so I'd not be surprised if it killed your wrasse. My crab killed two royal gramma they get them where they sleep. __________________ Previous tanks: 200 gal fowlr 9" Emperor Angel and many different butterfly fish 4" maroon clown and several other fish, 50 gal sump, 40 gal mixed reef/fish mostly softies and LPS. Current Tank Info: 40b 750 gph 45 lbs lr, 2"-3" sand, 165w full spectrum dimable LED, 20 gal sump/refugium 30 lbs lr, Bak Pak 2 skimmer, 4" sock temp 79-80, sg 1.026, NH3 0, NO2 0, NO3 <10, ph 8.2, calc 400, mag 1300