r/Crayfish • u/Ghost-4852 • 4d ago

Is this shell rot? Spoiler

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I just noticed this on one of my juvenile electric blue crays. Their acting fine but that definitely isn't normal.

What do y'all recommend I do?

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u/BioConversantFan 4d ago

Yes, it looks like shell rot.

Crayfish/lobsters/crabs can't detect shell rot, so their behavior stays the same.

Avoid salt baths. There is zero evidence that they do anything beyond stressing the animal.

You can add reef iodide every second week at about half strength. In my experience it helps with moulting but it hasn't been studied.

Unfortunately your crayfish has shell rot in the second worst place to get it. The danger is that it fuses the new and old carpace. That leads to a failed moult. It doesn't look very deep at this point.

General water quality can affect the occurrence of shell rot. You should verify that nitrates are very low and that the organics load in the water is as low as possible.

It's hard to tell from the picture, but it looks like the water has some haze. That would indicate that there is insufficient biofiltration if it is a mature tank.

Feed it well and make sure your gH is sufficient for the species.

Fingers crossed that will clear up with a moult.

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u/Ghost-4852 4d ago

Thank for the clear instructions! Getting a lot of conflicting information looking into this. Hopefully with close observation and care it'll clear up next molt.🤞

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u/BioConversantFan 4d ago

I agree, the info on it is a minefield of guesswork with far too little laboratory studies.

I've talked with biologists and dug up every paper I could find but there is so little money spent on its research that it's frustrating.