1st Molt....I think! (Pic)

[Guest]

So I think we are in the process of our first molt! Everyone has been burying a lot, but they give us windows here and there so we check every few days just to keep track. Last night we found this:

http://s266.photobucket.com/albums/ii272/theboodges/

We could see movement over this crab/exo, but couldn't see much detail. The one thing that feels promising is that it looks like one of the back legs is hollow, and open on the end! You may be able to tell in the photo if you look at the little back leg, right below the front leg that is below the big PP. Not sure otherwise what a molt looks like. I really hope it is a successful one, and not that one crab found another!

If it is a molt, will we bother it by peeking every so often? It is on the bottom on the glass, so usually gets very little light unless we move the tank out and peek from underneath. I am guessing if it is a molt we would see more signs of it being an empty exo than a whole crab being eaten! My son is 4, and fascinated with the process. We would love to see more, but want to be respectful of the little guy if he is mid molt too!

Wish us luck!

Thanks!

Christy

[Guest]

Yep! That is DEFINITELY molter. A sure sign is that "too many legs" image.

Congratulations! You must be doing a pretty good job, the coloring on that old BP is really nice too!

[MudCrabDude]

Exciting, isn't it?

In a course of a week, you'll be able to see that mass of shells disappear as the crab eats it up on it's way back to normalcy. Then a week or so more before it pops out of that burrow.

Here's sending good vibes to the molter.

PS...peeking at it shouldn't bother it too much at this stage. Just don't shine a really bright light at it, like a flashlight or a 1000000-candlepower spotlight or something....

PPS...AND NO TAPPING!

j/k

[Guest]

Looks like exo to me!!! CONGRATS!!! And, no, peeking shouldn't bother him.....I do it all the time!

Make sure to post pics when he re-emerges!! Can't wait to see him!

[Kilimanjaro]

Molts...exciting...stressful. Lucky this guy left you a nice window and the molt seems to be progressing well!

Can't wait to see when he resurfaces.

[Guest]

Thanks for all the well wishes!

We discovered the other PP above ground today, so we know for sure it is Thomas, the adopted crab. I think he had been living for a while without enough depth to dig, and he was pretty lethargic when we got him. He did seem to perk up that first week, and I think he ate pretty well before going down, so I am keeping my fingers crossed that it was enough to get him all the way through his molt!

We peeked again today, and saw that as of tonight he has eaten (or moved) everything but the big claw, two legs, and a few crumbs. He even moved around over the window enough for us to see his new walking legs and PP, which looks good, although lighter in color. He seems to be moving well too!

Here are some pics from this morning. You can see the darker purple claw that is from the old exo, and the lighter claw you can see more clearly is Thomas! The little claw is part of the exo.






Michael has been fascinated with the process, and even explained it all to Tom tonight after dinner. I was quite impressed at what he understands already too! What a nice treat to get a window to peek in too!

Thanks everyone! If I get any more pics I will post more!

Have a good night!

[Guest]

congratulations
That's wonderful!

[Tetracolor]

LUCKY! I've never gotten a crab to leave me a window for any longer than a day! They'll dig down make a window and watch me for a day then dig away! I'm so happy your molt is going well! It really is an exciting, learning experience!!