Are There Hermit Crabs in the Dominican Republic? (Solved)

In the Dominican Republic, there are several species of crabs, one of them is the hermit crab, also called “Maquei” in the Dominican Republic, it is also known by the name of the Caribbean hermit crab.

They are terrestrial crabs, omnivorous foragers, living in the entire Caribbean Sea area. They reach a longevity of about 30 to 35 years.

Abandoning their shell and moving to a more comfortable shell as they grow. The color varies from pale red to dark brown or burgundy, with a distinguishing purple arm.

The peduncles are round and white, with a black or brown stripe on the underside. The eyes are oval in shape. The abdomen is short and slender.

There are four walking legs, four little legs to hold the shell in place, a small pincer, a large purple pincer, and four antennae. The large pincer is used to close the entrance of the shell to protect against predators.

In some countries the hermit crab is used as a pet and can cost up to 25 USD.

Where do hermit crabs live?

Although these hermit crabs live on land, instead of lungs they possess gills. The high relative humidity of their native environments.

In addition to carrying a reservoir of water, allows their modified gills to remain moist and thus function properly in extracting oxygen from the air.

Adults are found inland, while juveniles begin their lives in the water and near the shore. They are a common sight near people’s homes. They burrow and hide under the roots of large trees.

What do Caribbean hermit crabs eat?

Caribbean hermit crabs are herbivores and scavengers. In their natural environment hermit crabs feed on coconut trees, remains of dead organisms such as fish and other crabs.

Hermit crabs are able to bury their food in the sand to consume later, which other crabs can find and consume themselves.

For reproduction in August the hermit crabs wash their eggs, the adults return from the jungles to the beaches to spawn in the brackish water.

The eggs hatch and become part of the zooplankton feeding on phytoplankton until they complete the larval cycle and reach the beaches in search of shells.

Hermit crabs have incredible intelligence

My uncle, who lives in a village in the northern part of the Dominican Republic, told me an incredible story about a hermit crab.

It turns out that one day, my uncle, who has always kept chickens, realized that some animal in the area was stealing the eggs from the hens one by one.

He hadn’t noticed any strange animals hanging around, so one day, he decided to stay and watch all day to see which animal was stealing the eggs.

My uncle saw a hermit crab approaching slowly, he paid no attention to it, until he saw that the crab approached where the eggs were and with two of its legs took out one of the eggs.

The crab took out the egg and with the other legs walked to a palm tree with a big rock at the base, the crab climbed a little with the egg in its front legs and dropped it on the rocks.

Then he came down and began to eat the inner part of the egg, my uncle told me that he saw the other eggshells on that rock, so he realized that the culprit of the thefts had been the hermit crab.

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