Hi all - yesterday I got two Halloween hermits via mail order. Cool critters I've been trying to get for a while. One of them molted today. He was moving a bit this morning and then I saw he hadn't moved for a few hours. When I looked I noticed a molt a little ways away from his shell (pretty sure it was a molt). My question is, where might he be hiding while his new shell hardens? My other hermits hang out in their shell but you can still usually see them in there if you look closely. I cannot see any hint of the hermit in his shell and frankly, they look big enough that I'm not sure they could pull inside the shell and not be seen at all. Possible? Probable? Or could he be hiding inside my rock? I do have one cone shell I could put in the tank but it's quite large - twice as large as the one he was in so I think it would be too big. Any ideas where to order some? Reef cleaners has them but you have to do a minimum order for them to ship.
Halloween hermit question?
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Ron Reefman
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They climb out of their shell, molt and then quickly get back into their shell. They do not hide out away from their shell after they molt. We've watch ours trade shells several times. Even to go back and forth several times over a few days deciding which one it liked better! As they grow they will need bigger cone shells to move into. But they only need to be a bit bigger.
If you can't find any cone shells locally or online, send me a PM and we can talk. We have a small jar with about 50 cone shells and maybe we can find 1 or 2 to help you out.
If you can't find any cone shells locally or online, send me a PM and we can talk. We have a small jar with about 50 cone shells and maybe we can find 1 or 2 to help you out.
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hllb
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Update: This morning I look at that hermit, and still can't see him in the shell. But the other one was nearby and the shell was sitting upright on the sand (like he fell off the rock, landed that way and probably couldn't right his shell). So I put him on the sand properly, he walked over to the other shell, and then the other guy finally came out and ran away LOL. Drama! So they're both alive and well at least. Still surprised he could hide completely inside that shell!
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That's how most hermits hide. It's when they can't get far enough into the shell to disappear that they start thinking they need a bigger one! LOL!
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You want a big hermit crab? This guy's shell is 6" or 7" long!
The shell is a Pear, but the mollusk is gone. A good size hermit crab has moved in. On the top of the shell there are at least 2 Hitchhiker anemones, one with a purple mouth and 1 or 2 toward the top of the shell that appear to have orange mouths. They attach to shells or the carapace of crabs. When the crab eats the anemone gets bits of food that flow away. But the crab gets some protection by having anemones attached that keep some predators away. I love hitchhiker anemones, but they are not photosynthetic and need to be feed regularly. I kept one for about 6 months one time, but now I leave them alone.
The shell is a Pear, but the mollusk is gone. A good size hermit crab has moved in. On the top of the shell there are at least 2 Hitchhiker anemones, one with a purple mouth and 1 or 2 toward the top of the shell that appear to have orange mouths. They attach to shells or the carapace of crabs. When the crab eats the anemone gets bits of food that flow away. But the crab gets some protection by having anemones attached that keep some predators away. I love hitchhiker anemones, but they are not photosynthetic and need to be feed regularly. I kept one for about 6 months one time, but now I leave them alone.
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hllb
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Ok, should I be really concerned about my one hermit? One of them is active and tooling around my tank. The other barely if ever moves. I checked yesterday or Saturday and he was alive and fine. Then tonight I moved a rock and found another molt and that’s right where he’s been parked. Why would he molt twice in a week? He must’ve just done it because I can’t see him in his shell again. I did order new shells but they’re not here yet. @Ron Reefman ?
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Impossible for me, or probably anybody to say more than a guess.
I've never seen a crab or shrimp molt twice in such a short time. You are sure it's the same one and not the one that didn't molt before? I'm just asking...
And once they molt they do tend to be very inactive for some period of time.
Give it time and keep watching. Let us know what ends up happening.
Good luck.
I've never seen a crab or shrimp molt twice in such a short time. You are sure it's the same one and not the one that didn't molt before? I'm just asking...
And once they molt they do tend to be very inactive for some period of time.
Give it time and keep watching. Let us know what ends up happening.
Good luck.
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hllb
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I can't be 100% certain it was the same one, but I think it was. It was literally about an inch from where he's been parked and this guy has never been active in the week I've had him. He didn't move over night so I'll watch today and see if he moves or at least pokes his head out of the shell. Its possible what I found wasn't a molt and he's dead, but it was probably just a molt.
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hllb
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Well, this morning I checked his shell (I thought it might have rolled over, over night) but still couldn't see the hermit. I'll be darned if I didn't look tonight and he was peeking out. He's still not moving around, but definitely alive! I'll keep watching him to see if he gets more active.
My new shells arrived tonight but I don't think they're big enough. They're pretty comparable to the shell he's in. I'll put the biggest one in next to him anyway, just in case.
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You might try a smaller one as well. It could be the shell it's in is bigger than it needs. That's why it isn't moving much (too much to lift) and why it can hide so far inside.
Just a thought.
Just a thought.
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hllb
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Well so far, the lazy guy is definitely more active. Still not as much as the other but a big change from before.
I was so excited that the active one was sizing up a new shell. He spent at least 30 minutes feeling it, turning in, getting part way in it...but he gave up and didn’t switch. I guess he didn’t like it. He was checking out another non- cone shell too. I’ll put the smaller ones in, just in case he likes those better and I have some bigger ones coming.
I was so excited that the active one was sizing up a new shell. He spent at least 30 minutes feeling it, turning in, getting part way in it...but he gave up and didn’t switch. I guess he didn’t like it. He was checking out another non- cone shell too. I’ll put the smaller ones in, just in case he likes those better and I have some bigger ones coming.
