surface molting or dead?

[_icosa_]

sorry for the essay, im trying to give as much info as possible. i couldnt figure out how to upload a picture so ill describe the situation as best as i can.

i moved my two hermies into a new enclosure at the end of august or beginning of september. its a 40 gallon breeder with a thermostat, temp is kept 80-85 and humidity is kept 80-85, both usually set right at 82. i have 6 inches of sand throughout the entire enclosure, some places have an icnh or two more. both of my crabs arent very large so i believe it is enough for them. the substrate is a mixture of beach sand, coco fiber, and a small amount of aragalive sand, i dont remember the exact mixture but it's mostly beach sand and its kept at sandcastle consistency. the tanks a little bare bones on decoration but they have multiple hides, 6 or 7 shells per crab, and a salt water and freshwater pool both deep enough to soak in (theres no sponges). i feed them a variety of dried foods and the occasional egg + eggshell, for whatever reason neither of them took to fresh food. i make sure the food they have available consists of a protien, calcium, and a plant material. they also have led lighting, i didnt like the idea of using a bulb so i got some aquarium lighting instead.

onto the situation. my crab scully is either surface molting or dead. shes a little smaller than a golf ball, and has had issues since i got her last october. shes spent probably 2/3 of the time ive had her buried. i thought the other crab was bullying her but im not completely sure. shes never been very active and has always been very flighty so i just try not to disturb her. shes refused to change shells even though i have quite a few available for her. i went so far as to order some that where the same shape and color as the one she has on. shes grown so much that her big claw and one leg stick out of the shell when she pulls in. she hasnt even looked at other shells, ive never even seen her go near them until now. she just came up from a molt at the beginning of september so i dont think its time for her to molt again.

four days ago she went into the shell shop (its a plastic cookie jar with the lid off, i filled it with spag moss and put the shells in there) and started hanging all the way out of her shell. i can see the tiny legs on her side that usually stay in the shell. she hasnt moved at all. her eyes are touching together and she looks almost pale, but not in the way ive seen her look before she molts.

im concerned because i dont understand why she would surface molt. i havent seen any evidence that she dug in the sand at all. the other crab is doing just fine in the new tank, but hes in crab jail rn so he doesnt eat the molter. by all accounts i think my tank / care is perfectly fine, i dont understand what could cause her to surface molt.

about a week ago we had a really bad heat wave and our ac went out. it got to be 92 degrees in the tank at one point, im worried that it might have been too much for her. i dont know what else to do for her or if theres even anything to be done. im keeping it dark in the tank and i only check on her once a day to minimize the stress if shes still alive. it smells a little funky in the tank but it didnt strike me as a dead fish smell, it might just be nasty food since i havent really messed with the tank in the last few days.

can someone with more experience please offer some advice on this? i dont want to keep my other crab in iso forever but i dont want to move scully incase shes molting and not dead. how long do i have to wait before i know for sure, and why would she not have buried? if im doing something wrong in my tank please let me know, im not sure what to do.

EDIT: i picked her up very gently and shes completely limp but she didnt fall out of the shell so i put her back as carefully as possible. theres a pretty foul fishy now. i dont think shes alive but ill leave it until someone tells me to do otherwise.

[Spocktopus]

Hi there, I am so sorry to say but due to Scully not reacting at all to your touch and the fishy smell it is likely that Scully has passed… I am very sorry about this. If you would like to leave Scully alone for another day to make sure, then you are more than entitled to do so. A surface molter would react in some way to being handled, in my experience.

In regards to your tank, your specs sound very good! My tank is also a 40 gal with 80-85% humidity and similar substrate/food/decor and my crabs have been happy and healthy for years. From what you have described, your tank is likely not the cause of this. If your crab was being bullied that could be a possible cause (stress), however it is likely that your crab experienced Post Purchase Death Syndrome. PPDS affects many hermit crabs and has a 80% chance to end a crab’s life before their first molt. I know you mentioned your crab has had a successful molt in the past; however, PPDS is still a risk for hermit crabs until after their third or fourth molt in proper conditions. Please understand that PPDS is not the fault of the owner and is 100% the fault of the horrible conditions hermit crabs experience in capture, shipping, and sale in (typically) very inadequate tanks in pet stores/novelty shops. You seem like a very responsible and caring owner, and I am sorry that you have experienced this.