Did you know the number of available shells is very important to the survival of the Hermit Crab? If you take empty sea shells from tide pools it might have been a future home.

Hermit Crab or Unauna
Calcinus species

Description • The Hermit crab is small crab living a snail shells. It can grow up to 9cmin llength. It is an arthropod. It has jointed limbs and segmented bodies. It has three body parts, a head, thorax (mid-body) and abdomen. It has two antennae, crushing mouth parts called mandibles and a hard external skeleton.

Ha bitat • The Hermit crab is found in Hawaii's tidepools and reef shallows. They often crowd the ocean floor in areas where food and snail shells are abundant. Other types of land crabs spend most of their lives on shore.

Diet • The Hermit crab is omnivorous. This means that it eats both plants and animal material. They are eaten by larger Hermit crabs, box crabs, octopus, as well as wrasses and other reef fishes with jaws for crushing shelled invertebrates.