Missing after molt

[Sweetp544]

I have 2 crabs. They both burrowed under the sand weeks ago to molt after changing shells. After lifting the one toy we could see one of them to peek at but not the other. This morning I went to turn the light on and seen 1 in a new shell out in the tank finally. The hole he was in is empty but I noticed the shell from the other one is also out on the surface but no crab anywhere. I checked all the shells and he’s not in any. I don’t know where it could be. It’s impossible for any to escape. I smell tested daily while they were underground. Could the other crab had eaten and brought both shells up? Or could he have came up and left his shell and burrowed back down? Idk what to do. Should I dig a little?

[curlysister]

Do you have a bunch of extra shells in the tank? Is there a possibility that he took one of the other shells? Most times when a person describes this happening, the crab has simply moved into another shell.

[Sweetp544]

All the shells were accounted for but when my daughter got home she said the shell I thought was his wasn’t, she put another one in there that was smaller so he is still in his shell buried somewhere! Back to waiting…..

[curlysister]

That's good to hear! I'm glad you figured it out and didn't try to dig him up.
The waiting is the hardest part. I had forgotten how often tiny/ small crabs go down to molt. My jumbo only goes down about once a year. I got two little dudes, and I hardly see them! LOL!