Shrimp molt

kreblak

kreblak

FDA approval pending
Mar 13, 2003
782
0
0
How long should it take for a candy striped cleaner shrimp's shell to harden after a molt? Yesterday my cleaner shrimp looked completely normal, nothing out of the ordinary. Today, he looks the same, except his colors are a little brighter, and his antennae are longer. Strangely, there is a shrimp shell on the tank floor. Is it possible for a shrimp to molt and harden within 14 hours? (the approximate time between viewings)

I was under the impression that the hardening process took a couple of days. Also, is it strange that my shrimp and my hermits are molting as fast as they can? All 6 of my scarlett hermit crabs have molted within the last months, one of them twice. The cleaner shrimp has been in the tank a week, and has now molted. What gives?
 
I'm sure they can do it that quickly if they can, though a few days is the norm. You may want to check your iodine levels. If these are high they'll molt as much as they can, which may explain why you're having such frequent molts.
 
It's pretty dependent on growth. Sounds like they are growing and molting, which is pretty normal. Scarlet cleaners will molt about every 2 weeks, for example.

While there seems to be a requirement for iodine for general crustacean health, the requirement for molting is dubious. Although it resides in reefkeeping lore, I have found nothing in the scientific literature that implies a link between iodine and crustacean molting.

BTW, the cuticle will harden in about a day.
 
Every two weeks? Wow, I thought molting was more like a once every six months sort of thing. My hermits went for five months without molting (or I just didn't notice) and now it seems like every time I look in the tank I see an old shell.

Could it have anything to do with the food I am putting in the tank? I have recently (within the last month) begun using frozen food consisting of formula one, formula two, spiriluna, brine, mysid, and various other goodies. The fish seem to like it well enough, but my hermits go bananas when the chunks hit the substrate! The shrimp is all about it, too. He will travel the length of the tank at warp speed for meaty piece.
 
Two weeks is pretty standard for most common aquarium shrimp species, and it does occur more or less overnight. Many crustacean species will hide the following day while their cuticle/exoskeleton hardens, but cleaner shrimp are (mostly) "off-limits" to predators...since they aren't as worried about being eaten, cleaners are usually willing to walk around out in the open immediately after a molt.

Don't worry about dosing iodine for crustaceans; your salt mix contains all the trace elements needed.
 
My hermits went for five months without molting (or I just didn't notice)
Click to expand...
I bet it's the latter. Let's face it, how carefully do most of us watch our hermits? But they may molt less often than shrimp. More calcified cuticles take longer to prepare for a molt, and longer to build.
I agree with boogiechillin about dosing iodine. It's not only in the salt mix, but there's lots in the food.
 
Well there we. I stand corrected:) So is it important though to molting?
 
I would say no, but just because I can't find a reference doesn't mean it isn't important. I have done searches on several major databases and have found nothing. Plus, part of my professional life is insect endocrinology, which is very similar to that in crustaceans. None of the hormonal steps involves iodine (their molting hormones are all steroids and peptides, nothing like thyroxine) in either insects or crustaceans.
However, there is a pervasive belief that iodine is important in crustacean molting on these boards, so I find it hard to believe that it's based on nothing.
 
Mogurnda,
I'm willing to bet that I simply didn't notice the molts. The first time I saw a molt, it was right up on top of my largest piece of live rock, sitting in plain view. Now I see them all the time, but I'm pretty certain it's because I'm actually looking for them now.

I have read that iodine is important to crustaceans, though I don't know for what reason. I have done some work with insects as well, mostly involving cholinesterase inhibitors. I have also looked at the effects of insecticide runoff on ocean crustaceans, and I can't remember anything about iodine being essential to them. However, I am certain that somewhere along the line I have read that iodine is important. This is going to bug me, I'll have to consult some old textbooks...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom