Horseshoe Crabs

[ShilohPSU]

Do horseshoe crabs molt their exoskeleton like shrimp? I bought a little one 3 days ago and it either died or molted. I have a deep sand bed and it normally hides beneath it. So if they molt, it is probably still alive... If not, it is dead... I don't mind either way because that lil bastard only kicked up sand.

 

[Koshmar]

Yes they do molt. I've handled a few at my aquarium. Their molts look exactly like the real thing, no difference in color either. They look more real than any molt I have come across. When they get big, they are extremely destructive in terms of rock work and coral. They have a surprising amount of power in their tail and can "swim" into rocks and tankmates clumsily. Just lettin ya know.

 

[ShilohPSU]

Thanks. I've watched mine swim before. It's pretty funny because they swim upside down and kind of drift with the current. And their molt does look exactly like the crab. My roommates thought it was the actual crab, but I looked at it closely, and saw no meat attached. They said that they saw fish picking at it while I was at work, so I wasn't sure if the fish ate the meat or not... But I'm sure that i'll know in a few days. I'll look for a cloudy sandy tank and some patterns in the sand.

 

[bobt2]

unfortunatly, they will not last long term in a tank, no matter what you do.

 

[graveyardworm]

Really innappropriate critters for a reef tank. They eat the life out of your sand bed, and when the food source diminishes the crab starves. Even if it did find enough food to sustain itself and grow it will out grow most home sized aquariums. An interesting thing about them is they have blue blood, and if I remember correctly more closely related to spiders than crabs. Anyway IMO a critter which shouldnt even be available in the hobby trade.