Originally posted by Don Sicilia: If Hermie goes into hiding, what will be her new nickname???
Hermit Crab...
"Hermit Crab, common name for any member of a family of marine crabs and for several related terrestrial crabs. They are found on or just off the coasts of Europe and the Americas. Hermit crabs, also called robber crabs, are armorless animals, the largest of which are found along the Pacific coast and attain a length of up to 46 cm (18 in). They insert their abdomens into gastropod mollusk shells that they carry about with them for protection. The abdomens of the crabs are soft and asymmetrical, flexed and twisted to fit into the whorls of the borrowed shells. Their abdominal appendages are especially modified for keeping the shell firmly supported on the body.
Hermit crabs are often forced to seek new shells because they have outgrown their old ones; they change their housing whenever chancing upon another shell into which they can fit. Most hermit crabs are marine. The few terrestrial forms are tropical and of the same family as the coconut crab.
Scientific classification: Marine hermit crabs make up the family Paguridae. Terrestrial hermit crabs belong to the family Parapaguridae. The common American hermit crab is classified as Pagurus longicarpus."
I like that... "Pagurus longicarpus". Sounds sexy.
