Dead Halloween Hermit? Or Molt?

[Jamie9]

I fear the answer is dead hermit crab, but thought I’d post to see what people think (photo below). This lovely Halloween hermit crab was among the first few critters into my tank yesterday. After acclimating I put him in and he crawled about 8 inches to some rock and stayed there. This morning I found the below on the sand nearby. It almost looks like there’s still something occasionally moving in the shell but I don’t want to disturb it. All the other new aquatic friends are doing well. What do we think? Dead or molt?

 

[Jamie9]

And here is the best photo I can get of the shell as it sits now. I know it’s not great.

 

[reef.fiens]

Looks dead to me, if you really aren’t sure about the shell keep it for 24hrs and if no movement take it out.

 

[Jamie9]

I got a better view today, and there was definitely movement in the shell. I think maybe it just molted! Perhaps he was just waiting for a safer place. At the LFS, the inverts are basically in just small QT tanks with maybe a piece of plastic pipe. No sand or rocks for hermits to hide in when they need a little privacy.

 

[Jamie9]

I'm happy to report an update on this one, in case anybody sees a similar molt in the future. The Halloween hermit is alive and well, it was definitely just a molt. He's now cruising around the tank at will and settled in nicely.