About the Book
Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Pages: 42. Chapters: Australian land hermit crab, Calcinus, Calcinus elegans, Calcinus tubularis, Cancellus (genus), Caribbean hermit crab, Ciliopagurus, Ciliopagurus albatrossi, Ciliopagurus alcocki, Ciliopagurus babai, Ciliopagurus caparti, Ciliopagurus galzini, Ciliopagurus haigae, Ciliopagurus hawaiiensis, Ciliopagurus krempfi, Ciliopagurus liui, Ciliopagurus macrolepis, Ciliopagurus major, Ciliopagurus obesus, Ciliopagurus pacificus, Ciliopagurus plessisi, Ciliopagurus shebae, Ciliopagurus substriatiformis, Ciliopagurus tenebrarum, Ciliopagurus tricolor, Ciliopagurus vakovako, Clibanarius, Clibanarius digueti, Clibanarius erythropus, Clibanarius fonticola, Clibanarius tricolor, Clibanarius vittatus, Coconut crab, Coenobita, Coenobita brevimanus, Coenobita cavipes, Coenobita perlatus, Coenobita rugosus, Coenobita scaevola, Coenobita violascens, Coenobitidae, Cretatrizocheles, Dardanus (genus), Dardanus calidus, Dardanus gemmatus, Dardanus megistos, Dardanus pedunculatus, Dardanus venosus, Diogenes (genus), Diogenes pugilator, Diogenidae, Ecuadorian hermit crab, Halloween hermit crab, Mesoparapylocheles, Paguridae, Paguristes, Paguristes cadenati, Paguristes frontalis, Pagurus armatus, Pagurus bernhardus, Pagurus hirsutiusculus, Pagurus longicarpus, Pagurus novizealandiae, Pagurus pollicaris, Pagurus prideaux, Pagurus samuelis, Pagurus sinuatus, Palaeopagurus, Parapaguridae, Petrochirus diogenes, Porcellanopagurus, Porcellanopagurus edwardsi, Pylochelidae, Pylojacquesidae. Excerpt: The coconut crab, Birgus latro, is a species of terrestrial hermit crab, also known as the robber crab or palm thief. It is the largest land-living arthropod in the world, and is probably at the upper size limit for terrestrial animals with exoskeletons in recent Earth atmosphere, with a weight of up to 4.1 kg (9.0 lb). It can grow to up to 1 m (3 ft 3 in) in length from leg to leg. It is found on islands across the Indian Ocean and parts of the Pacific Ocean as far east as the Gambier Islands, mirroring the distribution of the coconut palm; it has been extirpated from most areas with a significant human population, including mainland Australia and Madagascar. The coconut crab is the only species of the genus Birgus, and is related to the terrestrial hermit crabs of the genus Coenobita. It shows a number of adaptations to life on land. Like hermit crabs, juvenile coconut crabs use empty gastropod shells for protection, but the adults develop a tough exoskeleton on their abdomen and stop carrying a shell. Coconut crabs have evolved organs known as "branchiostegal lungs," which are used instead of the vestigial gills for breathing. They cannot swim, and will drown if immersed in water for long. They have developed an acute sense of smell, which has evolved convergently with that of insects, and which they use to find potential food sources. Mating occurs on dry land, but the females migrate to the sea to release their fertilised eggs as they hatch. The larvae are planktonic for 3-4 weeks, before settling to the sea floor and entering a gastropod shell. Sexual maturity is reached after about 5 years, and the total lifespan may be over 60 years. Adult coconut crabs feed on fruits, nuts, seeds, and the pith of fallen trees, but will eat carrion and other organic matter opportunistically. The species is popularly associated with the coconut, and has been widely reported to climb trees to pick coconuts, which it then opens to eat the flesh. While coconut crabs can climb tr
