Mantis looking gray

[koijoy]

My new 2" mantis shrimp ( no ID yet) has been inactive and not eating for the past few days and has turned from his dark green color to a dull gray.
Is this normal just before a molt or is he sick?
If so what can I do to help him....


Koijoy

 

[Gonodactylus]

Much of the vivid color in stomatopods is in the cuticle. I suspect that your animal has molted and you missed it. Being held with too much light, a light background, and pour diet will produce very "gray" individuals after a few molts. The animal may be able to recover its color with a more varied diet full of carotinoids, a dark retreat, and darker, more colorful backgrounds. I suspect that nitrate also can contribute to this, but don't have hard proof. One way that usually works to brighten up a gonodactylid is to give it a dark cavity in a tank with lots of calurpa or other green algae.

Roy