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.
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
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 below.
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.