HCA: Hermit Crab Association

please look at the inside of this shell. there is an obvious place where there is a maybe a broken edge or something that is sharp and rough. this is the shell that my large strawberry, Lobby, was in when i got him. lots of you helped me over the course of a few months as i was trying to understand his behavior and thought that he was pre-molt. for a few days before he passed he would sit and soak for hours in the salt water pool. i couple of months ago i happened to uncover his remains outside and got a look at his abdomen which looked flat. i wasn't sure if that was post-mortem or not....i looked in the shell and this is what i saw. am i right to think that this is most likely the cause of his death?

this one has a circle around exactly what id like for you guys to see.... hope you can tell since it is difficult to get light in that way!

What your seeing is the foundation for the support structure or whirl of the shell which does appear to be chipped but it doesn't look sharp enough to me cause a problem.Straws are notorious Divas as they have certain needs that have to be met such as temp and humidity in between 80 to 86 degrees and 80 to 86 percent, deeper substrate and constant access to marine grade aquarium salt water from a brand like Instant Ocean or Oceanic.What brand salt water mix are you using?What had your climate been like?There are a lot of things that can have an impact on the health and well being of the exotic species.

Crabber85: thanks for your questions. Lobby passed last July and you and others were such a major help to me in making sure his conditions were optimal. You all walked me through his requirements and helped me try to understand his behavior. His water, temp, humidity, food and habitat were pretty darn good thanks to this site! When I rub my finger across that part it feels sharp and rough to me but I can't convey that through a picture

If everything was optimal for the straw then it could have easily been stress. I have lost a few from stress like that. (surprisingly though, I have had less losses from straws than PP's from stress) They will act normal then go lethargic and disappear. That is the trend I have noticed.What you are seeing inside this shell is the second type of shell modification. E's are notorious for doing it. It is also referred to as a modified shell, customized shell or hollowed shell. Basically the crab goes in and carves out the internal spiral of the shell. All crabs to it to an extent, some a little more than others. I have a few shells that look like that that my E's have gone through. They weren't able to remove the entire inside and it is left with an astonishingly sharp edge.The other type of shell modification is found on the outside of the shell. It is the opening or rim. Crabs will chip away at the rim so it fits their eyes. I have had a few very nice shells come victim to this type of shell modification.I have a turbo just like that, or had one that one of my straws came in. It had modification(both) to it too.

So insightful! Thank you. As it turns out I have an e that's done that I think, ha, wha da ya know

All crabs modify their shells, and straws really like to remove the inner spiral. All my E's natural Turbos' they came in are carved out like this. PP's just don't do it as much because the Pica shell they normally have available to them are just too strong and hard to modify inside so sometimes they don't bother. They do love moving into old Straw shells that are modified though Very normal!