Scarlet reef crab doing nothing?

[lsween89]

Hi,

We picked up a scarlet reef crab last Friday. On the first day was really active and climbed up to the top of a rock and perched there on a flat bit. But it hasn’t really moved since. Eyes are moving and claws are in and out and when I popped in some crab cuisine yesterday it pulled it close and seems to have eaten it. I had heard they were really active hermits. Is it getting ready to molt or really stressed or just lazy? Water parameters all good!

 

[lsween89]

Whoops posted in wrong group!

 

[143MPCo]

Hi,

We picked up a scarlet reef crab last Friday. On the first day was really active and climbed up to the top of a rock and perched there on a flat bit. But it hasn’t really moved since. Eyes are moving and claws are in and out and when I popped in some crab cuisine yesterday it pulled it close and seems to have eaten it. I had heard they were really active hermits. Is it getting ready to molt or really stressed or just lazy? Water parameters all good!

Sounds like your new scarlet is doing exactly what a lot of them do: find a comfy spot, park there, and freak their new owner out by looking “too chill.” The fact that its eyes are moving, claws are coming in and out, and it pulled food in to eat are all really reassuring signs it’s okay and not crashing.

IME/MHO - Hermits—especially scarlets—aren’t always the nonstop bulldozers people expect. Many of them pick a perch and hang there for long stretches, especially in the first week while they de‑stress from transport and get used to the new tank. On top of that, when they’re gearing up to molt, they often get extra quiet: less roaming, more hiding or sitting still, and kind of “low‑energy” behavior. That can last days, sometimes longer, without it meaning something is wrong.

Right now, the best thing you can do is keep everything stable and boring: no big parameter swings, no constant poking or moving it, and just offer small bits of food near its spot now and then. If it keeps taking food, twitches or pulls in when something gets close, and doesn’t develop that unmistakable rotten smell, it’s almost certainly just settling in or prepping for a molt. If, on the other hand, it goes totally limp hanging out of the shell with zero response and a nasty odor, that’s when you worry—but from what you’ve described, you’re not there at all.

 

[lsween89]

Hi,

We picked up a scarlet reef crab last Friday. On the first day was really active and climbed up to the top of a rock and perched there on a flat bit. But it hasn’t really moved since. Eyes are moving and claws are in and out and when I popped in some crab cuisine yesterday it pulled it close and seems to have eaten it. I had heard they were really active hermits. Is it getting ready to molt or really stressed or just lazy? Water parameters all good!

Sounds like your new scarlet is doing exactly what a lot of them do: find a comfy spot, park there, and freak their new owner out by looking “too chill.” The fact that its eyes are moving, claws are coming in and out, and it pulled food in to eat are all really reassuring signs it’s okay and not crashing.

IME/MHO - Hermits—especially scarlets—aren’t always the nonstop bulldozers people expect. Many of them pick a perch and hang there for long stretches, especially in the first week while they de‑stress from transport and get used to the new tank. On top of that, when they’re gearing up to molt, they often get extra quiet: less roaming, more hiding or sitting still, and kind of “low‑energy” behavior. That can last days, sometimes longer, without it meaning something is wrong.

Right now, the best thing you can do is keep everything stable and boring: no big parameter swings, no constant poking or moving it, and just offer small bits of food near its spot now and then. If it keeps taking food, twitches or pulls in when something gets close, and doesn’t develop that unmistakable rotten smell, it’s almost certainly just settling in or prepping for a molt. If, on the other hand, it goes totally limp hanging out of the shell with zero response and a nasty odor, that’s when you worry—but from what you’ve described, you’re not there at all.

Phew! Thanks so much that’s really reassuring. I feel like most of my invertebrates so far just like giving me heart attacks either by disappearing and a few days or being motionless!! I’ll keep popping in some food every so often and fingers crossed everything stays fine! Thanks again