I found a #MTS4N seashell on Okinawa. What should I do?

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Posted on January 30, 2022 by Admin11

So far, I have placed over six hundred marked turbo seashells in the coastal forest for hermit crabs in need. The shells are marked and numbered with the hashtag #mts4n ( Make The Switch For Nature ). Hopefully, labeling the surface of the seashells will prevent poachers, beachcombers, and fishers from taking them.

Hermit crabs are a national living monument species of Japan. It is against the law to collect them. Take photos only!

What to do if you find a #MTS4N or #MILLER shell

Take a photograph of the Hermit crab in its natural habitat
Enjoy the moment and do not harass it
Share on social media and tag #mts4n
Document your observation on iNaturalist
These occupied shells are not collectibles, do not take them

What to do if you find a hermit crab adapting with plastic

Take a photograph of the hermit crab in its original habitat
Leave the hermit crab alone and do not harass it
Send me a DM with the exact beach location
I will place empty shells in the coastal forest for the hermit crabs

How often have you picked up an empty shell and brought it home? I am guilty. Most people don’t realize that they are taking the potential home of a hermit crab. If you are a shell collector, please return all unwanted shells to the coastline. #taketrashnothomes

It’s crucial to protect these beautiful creatures for future generations. Hermit crabs play an essential role in the coastal ecosystem. Hermit crabs do not belong in cages; please leave them in their natural habitat.

Help me make a difference by supporting The #MST4N Hermit Crab Conservation Project. Please check out my Patreon page, MakeTheSwitch4Nature. I will collect a bucket full of marine debris for every supporting member. Our waste is a massive problem on our beautiful shorelines.

Do you have any seashells collecting dust at home? If so, consider giving them back to nature. #taktrashnothomes

The Mission of the #MTS4N conservation project is to spread joy, inspire change, and save lives.

Click on the donation link below to help fund Shawn’s conservation projects.

Interview On the Kelly Clarkson Show

Making the switch 4 nature

Featured On AFN Okinawa

Featured Artist | Darell Oike

Posted on May 20, 2019 by Admin11

Last week, I received a positive message from Artist Darell Oike. It stated, your photographs of hermit crabs say a lot about the state of the oceans. The interface between the natural and the artificial is a theme that I address in my sculptural work. I’ve attached images of recent works that were inspired by your photographs.

Detritus

New works by Darrell Oike

The artificial and the natural have an ambiguous but inevitable relationship in the present and into the future. The artificial is the result of humankind’s ingenuity and ability to transform the natural. At what point does retransformation occur? When does litter become artifact? Is humanity destroying nature or simply participating in its perpetual cycles of change and transmutation? These are questions asked by Darrell Oike in his recent works.

Responding to his recent months long residency in a large city (Montreal) after having lived for most of his life in Haida Gwaii, a small northern archipelago in British Columbia, Darrell creates scenes where the man made and the natural interface; a pickerel eating snails off of a high heel, a catfish taking up residence in a Chanel bag, a dove deceased on a sidewalk. Evocative and foreboding, these new works in cold cast bronze and dry stone plaster are a change in course for the artist who for the past 20 years has been practicing in ceramics.

Urban environments seemingly leave little space for nature to thrive. There is little doubt that we affect change upon the natural environment and as a species our influence and impact on the planet is forceful and obvious but the relationships can be subtle. Hermit crabs have been documented, notably by photographer Shawn Miller, using plastic caps and containers instead of shells for protection. The house mouse, originally a wild species, now mainly inhabits buildings. From bacteria to whales, we share the planet with a myriad of organisms. The processes of evolution and extinction have existed since the amoeba. How do we move through time in a symbiosis with our biological neighbours? And what will be our legacy?

Darrell Oike has been working in ceramics from his studio in Tlell (which is a small community on the islands of Haida Gwaii on the north coast of British Columbia) for the past 20 years. With a tendency to explore subject matter and themes close at hand, he takes advantage of the endless natural beauty surrounding him. He has had several solo and group exhibitions of his ceramics in Haida Gwaii and Vancouver and sometimes teaches on the islands.

Seeking change and new stimuli, Darrell and his family relocated to Montreal this past summer. This new collection represents the body of work produced during an eight month residency at the Montreal Art Centre.

– Learn more about Darell Oike – https://www.darrelloike.com/

– If you would like to learn more about hermit crabs adapting with our waste please check out my post on “Crabs With Beach Trash Homes” by Shawn M Miller.

– Learn more about making a positive difference, TEDx talk | Adapting to or Changing Environment by Shawn M Miller

Hermit Crabs Living In Glass Bottles By Shawn Miller

Posted on May 4, 2019 by Admin11

Trash, treasure and the beautiful beaches of Okinawa.

One of my favorite things to do on the weekends is to go beach walking. Over the years, I have seen a significant increase in the amount of marine debris washed ashore. The trash is from all over the world, but majority of it washes up from Korea, China and Japan

Maeda flats

This post is not to make people sad, guilty or lose hope, It is to bring awareness to the ongoing trash problem in our oceans and on our shorelines.

Iheya beach

Majority of the glass bottles that wash ashore will eventually break. The resourceful blueberry hermit crabs take full advantage of any broken bottles and twist top caps. They eventually move into this valuable real estate and use it as a protective mobile home until they find a better option.

Marine debris

Broken glass Iheya Island

Hermit Crabs prefer to live in a natural seashell. The most durable home on Okinawa is the silver mouth turban shell.

Hermit crabs feeding

Due to a decline in the number of seashells, the hermit crabs have to adapt with our trash to survive. Below are photographs of hermit crabs found naturally adapting with metal twist caps and broken glass bottles.

Energy drink home

Energy drink home

Glass top Crab

Hermit crabs – real-estate

Metal cap

Hermit crab in a glass

The hermit crab is one of the few animals that can successfully adapt with our waste. If you would like to learn more about hermit crabs adapting with our waste please check out my post on “Crabs With Beach Trash Homes” by Shawn M Miller.

Learn more about making a difference, TEDx talk | Adapting to or Changing Environment by Shawn M Miller

My Mission: To Document and Preserve the Wildlife of the Ryukyu Islands

This site is also designed to help people identify the beautiful animals of Okinawa, basically to serve as an online nature reference guide. If you would like to make a contribution to support my mission, please click on the donation link paypal.me/maketheswitch4nature

Your donations will help worldwide conservation initiatives as well as bringing solutions to the worldwide pollution issues on our beautiful shorelines. Thank you for your support. Shawn M Miller.

Light bulbs, Plastic Bottles and Hermit Crabs

Posted on March 11, 2019 by Admin11

One of my favorite things to do on the weekends is to go beach walking. Over the years I have seen a significant increase in the amount of marine debris washed ashore. The trash is from all over the world, but majority of it washes up from Korea, China and Japan.

The trash is overwhelming on our shorelines and will take a very long time to clean up. Its absolutely necessary that we work together to fix this worldwide issue.

When I look at the photograph below, I see the potential monetary value in these single use products. I think the only way to combat the problem is to reduce the use and to make the debris worth picking up by giving it a cash value. One solution for the plastic bottle problem would be to create a worldwide deposit-refund system. For example, If people were paid 5-10 cents per plastic bottle collected I guarantee our beaches and forest dumping grounds would be cleaner.

Light bulbs are another form of debris that wash ashore. The light bulbs are transparent and blend in well with the surrounding beach litter. I have accidental stepped on light bulbs while beach combing after typhoons. It is important to wear protective footwear on majority of the beaches surrounding the Ryukyu Islands.

Try and find the broken light bulb below, this is a common site on local beaches.

Meet Edison, A resourceful blueberry hermit crab (Coenobita purpureus ) found naturally using a incandescent light bulb screw end as a protective home. I usually find hermit crabs adapting with plastic tops and twist top caps. This was my first encounter with a hermit crab using a light bulb screw end as a mobile home.

This post is not to make people sad, guilty or lose hope, It is to bring awareness to the ongoing trash problem in our oceans and on our shorelines. We all have the ability to make a difference by reducing the amount of single-use items we use daily.

Learn more about making a difference, TEDx talk | Adapting to or Changing Environment by Shawn M Miller

My Mission: To Protect and Preserve the Wildlife of the Ryukyu Islands for Future Generations. – If you would like to join my journey, check out my Patreon https://www.patreon.com/MakeTheSwitch4Nature

Your donations will help worldwide conservation initiatives as well as bringing solutions to the worldwide pollution issues on our beautiful shorelines. Thank you for your support. Shawn M Miller.

The lonely hermit crab adapting with a lug-nut cover by Shawn Miller

Posted on December 22, 2018 by Admin11

This week I went out camping with some friends on Miyagi Island. While searching for fire wood I stumbled upon a blueberry hermit crab (Coenobita purpureus) adapting with a metal lug-nut cover. I have previously found many hermit crabs adapting with other man-made items such as pet bottle caps, glass bottles, light bulb ends, laundry detergent caps and various scoops. I was pretty excited about this and had to show off the interesting find to my friends.

The blueberry hermit crab is temporarily making due with the available lug-nut cover. It will eventually switch to a shell when it finds an appropriate size. If you would like to learn more about this adaptive behavior please check out my post on “Crabs with Beach trash homes”

* All Coenobita species on Okinawa are recognized as a living natural monument of Japan.

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I also photographed the hermit crab on white for the Meet Your Neighbours Project. The technique eliminates distracting elements out of the background and shows the true beauty of the animal. The images are used for conservation awareness and educational purposes.

Later I offered lug nut a Turbo seashell and within five minutes he switched over to his new home.

Okinawa hermit crab

We were fortunate to have beautiful weather. Don’t forget to get out for some Nature Therapy! We all need a break from our busy lifestyles.

My Mission: To document and preserve the wildlife of the Ryukyu Islands

paypal.me/maketheswitch4nature

Your donations will help worldwide conservation initiatives as well as bring solutions to the worldwide pollution issues on our beautiful shorelines. Thank you for your support. Shawn M Miller.

Make The Switch For Nature By Shawn Miller

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Posted on June 22, 2018 by Admin11

“Crabs with beach trash homes” was featured in one of the most influential issues of National Geographic Magazine of all time. June 2018 National Geographic launched Planet or Plastic. This powerful issue focuses on bringing awareness to the worldwide plastic pollution problem and efforts to reduce the single-use plastic waste.

June 2018, National Geographic replaced the plastic cover with a paper cover ( PEFC-Certified Paper ) that can be recycled. This is a huge step in reducing the big problem of single-use plastic pollution in our oceans one small step at a time. The Editors did an outstanding job on this powerful ocean impact issue of National Geographic.

Below left is the new paper cover and on the right is the previous plastic cover

What a powerful National Geographic cover by Artist Jorge Gambo. The cover is a plastic bag resembling and Iceberg. This is one of the best covers of all time in my opinion. I was fortunate to get my hands on a Japanese issue as well.

Planet Or Plastic Cover

Excited and honored to have one of my photographs from Okinawa featured in the National Geographic Planet or Plastic Exhibition at the Church of Santa Maria della Vita in Bologna, Italy. Exhibition Date: 04/15/2019 – 09/22/2019

Photograph by Paolo Righi

Planet or Plastic Iconic Photographs

Learn more about reducing waste and making a difference. TEDx OIST Talk – Adapting to Our Changing Environment by Shawn Miller

If you would like to see more of my work in National Geographic Magazine, below are four powerful issues that featured the Endangered Species of Okinawa. (WILDLIFE AS CANON SEES IT)

Anderson’s crocodile newt by Shawn Miller. 11/2020 National Geographic

Amami Oshima frog by Shawn Miller. 08/2019 National Geographic

Kuroiwa’s Ground Gecko by Shawn Miller. 10/2017 National Geographic

Okinawa woodpecker by Shawn Miller. 05/2015 National Geographic

People often ask me what is the purpose of conservation photography? Having the ability to affect some form of positive change in the environment and make a global difference with the photographs. Hopefully, the images will inspire people to care more about nature and make a positive difference in the environment.

Let’s Make The Switch 4 Nature before it’s too late

Get Fa-Millerized with the Nature of the Ryukyu Islands – – – – SUBSCRIBE BELOW

Okinawa Nature Photography

沖縄自然写真 By Shawn Miller

Tag Archives: Hermit crabs adapting with our pollution by Shawn Miller

I found a #MTS4N seashell on Okinawa. What should I do?

Featured

Featured Artist | Darell Oike

Hermit Crabs Living In Glass Bottles By Shawn Miller

Light bulbs, Plastic Bottles and Hermit Crabs

The lonely hermit crab adapting with a lug-nut cover by Shawn Miller

Make The Switch For Nature By Shawn Miller

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