Ads
related to: what does hermit crabs eat
Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
A hermit crab emerges from its shell, Coenobita perlatus Outside its shell, the soft, curved abdomen of hermit crabs, such as Pagurus bernhardus, is vulnerable. Hermit crab species range in size and shape, from species only a few millimeters long to Coenobita brevimanus (Indos Crab), which can approach the size of a coconut and live 12–70 years.
A Caribbean hermit crab in the Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida. The Caribbean hermit crab (Coenobita clypeatus), also known as the soldier crab, [2] West Atlantic crab, tree crab, or purple pincher (due to the distinctive purple claw), is a species of land hermit crab native to the west Atlantic, Belize, southern Florida, [3] Venezuela, and the West Indies.
Because the hermit crab lives in the bottom of rock pools and ocean floors, and due to its size, its predator list is long. It is easy prey for the likes of fish, and octopus. [15] Other crabs are also known to eat the smaller and more unprotected species, like the hermit crab, hence the need for shells to protect the soft body.
Hermit crabs cannot produce their own shells, and therefore must scavenge for abandoned ones. [ 5 ] [ 6 ] [ 7 ] Shell selection plays many crucial roles in P. longicarpus , such as providing protection from predators, desiccation and salinity stress, as well as influencing competition, population size, and reproductive behaviors in the species.
Like other hermit crabs, Clibanarius vittatus lives inside the empty shell of a gastropod mollusc. This protects its soft abdomen and normally only its head and limbs project through the aperture of the shell. The chelipeds (claw-bearing legs) and claws of Clibanarius vittatus are small, both the same size, and covered in short bristles. When ...
The coconut crab (Birgus latro) is a terrestrial species of giant hermit crab, and is also known as the robber crab or palm thief. It is the largest terrestrial arthropod known, with a weight of up to 4.1 kg (9 lb). The distance from the tip of one leg to the tip of another can be as wide as 1 m (3 ft 3 in).