Hermit crabs steal each other's shells? Tell us something we haven't seen.

[steved13]

I know this about terrestrial crabs but still seemed appropriate.

ScienceDaily (Oct. 26, 2012) — Social animals usually congregate for protection or mating or to capture bigger prey, but a University of California, Berkeley, biologist has found that the terrestrial hermit crab has a more self-serving social agenda: to kick another crab out of its shell and move into a larger home.

All hermit crabs appropriate abandoned snail shells for their homes, but the dozen or so species of land-based hermit crabs -- popular terrarium pets -- are the only ones that hollow out and remodel their shells, sometimes doubling the internal volume. This provides more room to grow, more room for eggs -- sometimes a thousand more eggs -- and a lighter home to lug around as they forage.





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[BigAl07]

Makes me very cautious to do another "Conga Dance" LOL!

Great article and thanks for posting Steve. I would have never thought they would work together like that.