Crab Down

[QuickSwitchReef]

My girlfriend just found one of my new crabs was dead. Under closer inspection the crabs belly seems to be split open and maybe eggs are present. It’s hard to get a better picture. Has anyone experienced this before, an what should I do. I’m pretty sure this is an emerald crab but I could be wrong.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

@ISpeakForTheSeas

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

@ISpeakForTheSeas

Sorry I'm so late!

If the belly is split open and it has meat inside, my first thought would be a failed molt. If there's no meat inside, then it's just a molt.

If it's a failed molt, there are a few possibilities for why it failed:

Bunch of quotes for this - bear with me - but basically this happens either due to stress, injury (aggression or mechanical), diet, or water quality:

Molting issues can be caused by a number of things, but basically it boils down to either stress, diet, or inadequate water quality. Some crustaceans also have issues with lighting sometimes, so that may be something to look into as well.

here are some things that are commonly associated with bad molts in shrimp:
- Water Quality issues
- Improper diet
- Tank/tankmate issues (aggression, overcrowding, insufficient filtration, etc.)
- Water changes that change the parameters too much/too fast

(While this is implied above, I'll also specifically state a lack of adequate shelter/hiding places for inverts too).

With crustaceans, some parameters you may want to check include:

-Calcium
-pH
-Nitrate
-Phosphate
-Alkalinity would probably be good to test as well.

As a note, mantis shrimp (Stomatopods) are usually the only ones to commonly have issues with lighting.