The Caribbean hermit crab (''Coenobita clypeatus''), also known as the soldier crab, West Atlantic crab, tree crab, or purple pincher (due to the distinctive purple claw), is a species of land

hermit crab Hermit crabs are anomuran decapod crustaceans of the superfamily Paguroidea that have adapted to occupy empty scavenged mollusc shells to protect their fragile exoskeletons. There are over 800 species of hermit crab, most of which possess an as ...

native to the west

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wa ...

, southern

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and ...

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

, and the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greate ...

Description

Adults burrow and hide under the roots of large trees, and can be found a considerable distance inland. As with other terrestrial crabs, they use modified gills to breathe air. Their shells help maintain the humidity necessary for gas exchange to function. Typically, the Caribbean hermit crab's left claw is larger in size than its right claw and is purple in color. Female land hermit crabs release fertilized eggs into the ocean. The spawning (called "washing" in the English-speaking Caribbean) occurs on certain nights, usually around August.

Ecology

Caribbean hermit crabs are both herbivorous and scavengers. In the wild, ''C. clypeatus'' feeds on animal and plant remains, overripe fruit, and faeces of other animals, including the

Mona ground iguana The Mona ground iguana (''Cyclura stejnegeri'') is a rock iguana that is endemic to Mona Island, Puerto Rico, and is the largest native terrestrial lizard in Puerto Rico. It was previously considered a subspecies of the rhinoceros iguana (''C ...

(''Cyclura stejnegeri''). The West Indian top snail (''

Cittarium pica ''Cittarium pica'', common name the West Indian top shell or magpie shell, is a species of large edible sea snail, a Marine (ocean), marine gastropod mollusk in the family (biology), family Tegulidae. This species has a large black and white gas ...

'') shell is often used for its home, and the hermit crab can use its larger claw to cover the aperture of the shell for protection against

predator Predation is a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation (which usually do not kill t ...

s. As with other species of hermit crabs, ''C. clypeatus'' may engage in "shell fights" and can emit a chirping noise when stressed.

Aquaculture

This species is one of the two land hermit crabs commonly sold in the United States as pets, the other being the Ecuadorian hermit crab. ''C. clypeatus'' has been confirmed to live as long as 12 years, and some crab owners have claimed to have crabs live up to 40 years.

References

External links

*
''Coenobita'' SpeciesBermuda Department of Environment and Natural Resources ''Coenobita clypeatus'' Page
* * * {{Commonscat Hermit crabs Hermit crab, Caribbean Arthropods of the Dominican Republic Terrestrial crustaceans Crustaceans described in 1787