Coconut crab

Coconut crab

Scientific Classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Arthropoda Class: Malacostraca Order: Decapoda Family: Coenobitidae Genus: Birgus Species: B. latro
Binomial
Birgus latro

Coconut crab are the largest terrestrial arthropod in the world. They are a very rare species and only found on certain islands in the Indian and western Pacific Ocean. They are named for their ability to crack open coconuts with its large and powerful claws. But they are also called the robber crab because they go into houses and steal shiny things.

Anatomy

coconut crab on coconut

Some say that the coconut crab weigh about 4 kg and their body length is up to 400 mm with their legs spread out completely they are 1 m (3ft) [1]and the male are larger than the females.

Reproduction

When the coconut crab mates they go on dry land, and they mate from May to September especially in July and August and they do this very frequently. When they want to mate, the male and female fight and the male turns the female on her back. Shortly after they're done the female starts to lay her eggs and glues them to the underside of her abdomen. The eggs will hatch between the months of October or November were she will let go of her eggs at high tide.[2]

Ecology

A cooked coconut crab.

The coconut crab was once found in the Pacific, but now they are very rare to find. They used to be on the Cook Island but there were to many people there. Now they are found in Pukapuka, Suwarrow, Mangaia, Takutea, Mauke, Atiu and Palmerston [3] When its day time the coconut crab hides in the sand, and at night they come out and forage for food they look for fruit, rotting leaves, and animals, also with their claws they open fallen coconuts. The coconut crab is the largest crab on the world and lives on land, but does drink salt water every so often to get their salt levels up but if you leave an adult one in the water to long it will drowned. They grow very slowly, and molt their carapace periodically. When it is time for them to molt they dig a shallow hole in the sand, and stay there for about a month to molt and to grow a new and bigger carapace.