A molting crab appears quite limp and lifeless, and the body is often partway out of the shell. Sometimes, with very careful observation, you will be able to see small twitches from the hermit crab’s body while it is molting, but otherwise, it can be very difficult to tell whether or not it is still alive.

They will completely loose their outer shell and shed it and grow a new skin which hardens to a shell. Their exoskeletons are usually found near the molting crab. You may notice after they molt they come up to eat and drink to gain strength and then enlarge themselves and harden to their new shell.

As the crabs grow, they periodically need to upgrade their housing to bigger shells. When a new shell appears on the beach, the cramped crabs will form a orderly queue nearby and then change shells all at once, with each crab moving into the next biggest shell just abandoned by its former occupant.

Hermit crabs change shells as they grow, most often before or after they molt. Most hermit crabs molt every 12-18 months, so expect your hermit crab to change shells at least twice every 12 to 18 months.

The shells that hermit crabs seek are made by marine gastropods that secrete calcium carbonate from their mantel—the organ that covers their soft bodies. The shell is built up in deposits until the calcium carbonate becomes a crystalline structure held together via thin membranes of organic material.

In aquaculture farms, post-nursery crabs reach marketable size and maturity in 6–7 months compared with 18–24 months under natural conditions.

colourful mosaic crab

Biology. Queen conch can live a long time, up to 30 years. They grow up to 12 inches in length and can weigh up to 5 pounds.

Conch can be removed without damaging the shell by placing it in salted water, bringing the water to a boil and boiling for about 10 minutes, more or less depending on size. Another method is by freezing overnight, then thawing and pulling the body out of the shell.

Conchs like warm clear water and a sandy bottom. They hide when young and small in turtle grass bottom in the tropical reef areas of the Bahama, Turks and Caicos and Belize. Also the Florida Keys and other spotty reef areas around the Caribbean. They are an intelligent creature.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons Shell Price Guide

glory-of-the-seas cone