# Molting or Dead



## AlGee

Can you tell the difference between a shrimp that is in the process of molting and one that has just kicked the bucket? Anything during molting that would indicate the shrimp is still alive? Would gently disturbing it kill it?


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## southerndesert

Normally they will flex a few times and pop right out...

Here is a video...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_E4LppTeIY

Mine seem to get it done quicker, but you'll get the idea.

Cheers, Bill


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## macclellan

Dead shrimp gain a different coloration, like cooked shrimp that we eat. Molting shrimp don't look like that.


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## AlGee

Oh I thought they took hours and kept still. Guess my shrimp is just dead lol. I'm gonna feed him to my puffer.


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## dekstr

The invert in the video doesn't look like a shrimp... it has a giant claw or something.


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## mistergreen

a molt is transparent


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## Homer_Simpson

macclellan said:


> Dead shrimp gain a different coloration, like cooked shrimp that we eat. Molting shrimp don't look like that.


Agreed

If the shrimp's white carcass turns pink in a day or two, then the shrimp died. If you see a white exoskeleton where the shrimp looks like it blew up, then is likely an empty shell. I saw a shrimp exoskeleton in my 5 gallon low tech where at first I thought I had a dead shrimp. It looked like it had exploded, but then low and behold out of the corner of my eye on the other side of the tank I saw the two shrimp lurking around. The Amano Shrimp exoskeleton my 3 gallon also looked like an exploded shrimp. Again what do I see but the little shrimp still alive and moving around on the other side of the tank so I knew the bugger was still alive and that was just the exoskeleton he molted. The dead ghost shrimp in another one of my 5 gallon tanks looked pink like the color of the shrimp in the cocktail shrimp rings.


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## AlGee

Yeah I know what the molt looks like. And have had my share of dead, opaque pinkish shrimp. I was wondering how they looked and behaved during the process that would let you know it is still alive.


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## Homer_Simpson

AlGee said:


> Yeah I know what the molt looks like. And have had my share of dead, opaque pinkish shrimp. I was wondering how they looked and behaved during the process that would let you know it is still alive.


Tough to say. I know mine tend to go into hiding when they begin molting. I heard that this is normal and they instinctually do this to evade being preyed on as they are allegedly most vulnerable and weak when molting. I read that this is why it is always good to give them plenty of hiding places to help them feel safe, secure, and minimally stressed when they molt. The only time I saw one my shrimp shed its exoskeleton was when it was perched on a floating plantwhere it remained stationary and kept rubbing itself with its hind legs I didn't make anything of it. Then in the blink of an eye I saw its exoskeleton shoot off from where it was on and onto the side of the tank. I thought that the shrimp had attacked and killed another shrimp but when I took a closer look it was just an empty shell. The shrimp took off like a bat from hell right after shedding its exoskeleton.


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## loachlady5

dekstr said:


> The invert in the video doesn't look like a shrimp... it has a giant claw or something.


Yeah what was that long reddish thing - you think a claw? And were the other shrimp trying to eat the molted "shell" in the end of the video? Truly bizarre - but cool.


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## NeonShrimp

AlGee said:


> Oh I thought they took hours and kept still. Guess my shrimp is just dead lol. I'm gonna feed him to my puffer.


a live shrimp will be move even during the molting proocess.


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## AlGee

NeonShrimp said:


> a live shrimp will be move even during the molting proocess.


Yeah I now know thanks to you all. For some reason I always thought they went into a catatonic state during molting. Maybe that's for crabs?


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## A Hill

AlGee said:


> Yeah I now know thanks to you all. For some reason I always thought they went into a catatonic state during molting. Maybe that's for crabs?


Maybe you're thinking of butterfly pupae? 

Sometimes I see a dead shrimp cleaned of its body... now that looks weird especially when the eyes are still in tact:help: 

But molting on a whole is very quick 1-2 mins and its rare you'll see it unless you either A. Have no life (like moi ) or B. Have waaay too many shrimp. C. You're just lucky.

Also don't ever remove exoskeletons, let the shrimp eat it.

-Andrew


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## dekstr

Many good ideas here, I learned a lot.

I never knew shrimp molts are so fast. I always assumed that they were like the SW crabs I saw on the discovery channel a long time ago--how it takes them days to finally molt.

Here is one fail-proof method to catch them molting in action if you have a lot of time, money, effort, curiosity and boredom (all factors needed at the same time): Set up security camera(s) 24/7 toward a tank with tons of shrimp. At the end of each day, watch the video(s) in time-lapse. You're bound to catch some shrimp molting.


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## Sebastian Crab

For how long will they hide?!?!


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