Dead shrimp

[VoodooChild]

Usually I just pass something like this on as stress but since this is my first SW, I just need some form of reassurance or advice. I had a skunk cleaner die yesterday, after having him for a day. pH is around 8.3, Ca at 450 ppm, I haven't tested the KH in awhile, but it was pretty hard last time I checked, temp. 81 F, SG at 1.0022, no Cu, ammonia or nitrites, 5-10 ppm of NO3. The other shrimp I put in there seems to be doing just fine. Thanks for any help. I was wondering if it was just stress or if something is wrong with my water. Oh, for acclimation, I floated the bag for 20 min., then let in a bit of tank water 4 times over an hour and 15 minutes. Thanks.

[OrionGirl]

Are you sure it's dead? When they molt, they leave a perfect shell that frequently is mistaken for a death. The freshly molted shrimp will hide out for a while as it's new shell hardens, so will be unaccounted for a day or so. If there weren't any bits inside the shell, this is likely happened. It scared the heck out of me the first time it happened in our tank.

[VoodooChild]

Yeah, pretty sure. There's enough rock pieces in there now where it's real pain in the arse to move everything, but I looked many times last night and this morning and still only saw one. Do they go into seclusion after molting?

[OrionGirl]

Yep. The new shell is soft for quite a while, and fish, other shrimps, etc will make a snack out of them, given the chance. A freshlky molted shrimp or crab will hide for 1-2 days, then emerge bright and shiny. Can't gaurantee this is what happened, but I think it's more likely than a fatality.

:)

[VoodooChild]

I really hope you're right. The carcass/molt was pale, but still showed alot of color, and it didn't appear to be partially eaten. When I get home tonight I'll check it out. Thanks again Orion. I'll let you in to Monterey for free. Raven, Boogie, and Reefscape too.:D

[Corax]

When my coral banded shrimp first molted, I thought he was dead too =) The molt's look exactly like the real one, cuz it WAS the real one... It's an exact replica, minus the gooey stuff that makes it work... Hope yer little guy comes out soon, give him a few days..

[VoodooChild]

Will they molt the antennae too? I looked over the molt/carcass last night (I'm returning it Thursday for my refund, till then it's just in the freezer). It looks pretty whole. I've seen and felt alot of blue lobster/crawfish molts and these don't really feel nor look like the same thing. If I can't find him tonight, I'll dig through the rocks so I don't rip off my LFS. And yes, KoolAid does in fact rule. OH YEAH!

[OrionGirl]

The molt would look and feel just like one for a crawdad--if there's flesh inside, you're right, it's a fatality. Molts will look exactly like the animal--down to every little detail, but they fall apart when picked up and you can tell they are hollow. If it's squishy, it ain't a molt. Sorry.

[VoodooChild]

I didn't squish it at all, but I looked it over well. I didn't see any sort of opening that you would expect from a molt. So if it is a death, I guess that goes back to my original post. Any ideas on why he died. Again, it's been 4 days and the other guy seems to be doing just fine, though he's afraid of the light.

[VoodooChild]

He's dead. I rooted around last night. I actually did find a molt too, but I don't know if it was from the dead one or the live one. The live one seems to be doing good. I'm getting him two buddies today.

[OrionGirl]

I wouldn't worry too much about the death. I don't think it was anything in your tank that caused it's death. It could be that the molt was hard on it--it's not something they always survive. If the dead one was molting, the live one could have picked on it while the shell was still soft, killing it. They aren't always kind to each other during molts.

Shrimp are often shy in bright light--they tend to like hanging out in caves and overhangs.