Emerald Crab turns... Gray?

snarkes · 03/02/2006, 01:06 PM

Hey Guys,

I've been lurking in the forum for a while and thought it was about time I posted my first thread. Anyways, I've got a 12 gallon DX and its been running for about two months. Everything appears to be fine, I recently got over a bout of hair algae and all my parameters are zero. However, I recently added a Emerald crab to the mix, and instead of being emerald... well its turned gray. Its still all over the tank, eating and appears to be doing well. Is this normal? I've got plenty of algae for it to eat (bubble and macro), places for it to hide (10-15lbs LR), and the other inverts are doing well (5 small blue legged hermits).

Paintbug · 03/02/2006, 01:33 PM

thats usually a sign that its about to molt. i have had my one female stay grey for months. once she molted i never seen her again. dont know if something else ate her or what.

snarkes · 03/02/2006, 01:46 PM

yeah that was one of my thoughts about why the crab had turned grey, but as I'm so new wasnt sure. Hopefully thats it.

sassyfishy · 03/02/2006, 01:58 PM

I had one of my emeralds molt a couple of weeks ago, and was lucky enough to see it happen. That crab, too, had turned a slightly greyish-green color. I could not believe the size of the crab that exited!!! His molt was literally 1/2 his size!!! If I hadn't seen it happen with my own eyes, I would have thought someone had dropped in a new much larger crab.

cfarrow2 · 03/02/2006, 02:13 PM

awesome, my crab has been gray for a couple of months now. I asked my lfs and they had never heard of an emerald crab turning gray before (go figure) . I'm looking forward to getting a bigger crab. On this note, I've heard iodine or iodide plays a crucial role in the molting process. That if the iodine is insuffiicient, that the crab can come out of its molt disfigured or worse. Is there a way to test for it to make sure all is going to go well?

03/02/2006, 01:06 PM	#1
snarkes Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Atlanta, GA Posts: 479	Emerald Crab turns... Gray? Hey Guys, I've been lurking in the forum for a while and thought it was about time I posted my first thread. Anyways, I've got a 12 gallon DX and its been running for about two months. Everything appears to be fine, I recently got over a bout of hair algae and all my parameters are zero. However, I recently added a Emerald crab to the mix, and instead of being emerald... well its turned gray. Its still all over the tank, eating and appears to be doing well. Is this normal? I've got plenty of algae for it to eat (bubble and macro), places for it to hide (10-15lbs LR), and the other inverts are doing well (5 small blue legged hermits).

03/02/2006, 01:33 PM	#2
Paintbug Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Stoneville, NC Posts: 6,169	thats usually a sign that its about to molt. i have had my one female stay grey for months. once she molted i never seen her again. dont know if something else ate her or what. __________________ Never ask a girl over to see your crabs!! <-Tony-> Current Tank Info: NONE currently

03/02/2006, 02:13 PM	#5
cfarrow2 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Overland Park, KS Posts: 626	awesome, my crab has been gray for a couple of months now. I asked my lfs and they had never heard of an emerald crab turning gray before (go figure) . I'm looking forward to getting a bigger crab. On this note, I've heard iodine or iodide plays a crucial role in the molting process. That if the iodine is insuffiicient, that the crab can come out of its molt disfigured or worse. Is there a way to test for it to make sure all is going to go well? __________________ Happiness is contagious. What are you spreading? Current Tank Info: 55 gal. 216 W. T5s. Wet/dry sump w/ Mag 5 return. Softies, 3 fish, shrimp, urchin. HA factory for the time being.

03/02/2006, 01:46 PM	#3
snarkes Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Atlanta, GA Posts: 479	yeah that was one of my thoughts about why the crab had turned grey, but as I'm so new wasnt sure. Hopefully thats it.

03/02/2006, 01:58 PM	#4
sassyfishy Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Lehigh Valley, PA Posts: 118	I had one of my emeralds molt a couple of weeks ago, and was lucky enough to see it happen. That crab, too, had turned a slightly greyish-green color. I could not believe the size of the crab that exited!!! His molt was literally 1/2 his size!!! If I hadn't seen it happen with my own eyes, I would have thought someone had dropped in a new much larger crab.