Hermit crabs live on beaches, mud flats and shallow waters throughout the lower Chesapeake Bay. (Eric Heupel/Flickr)
Hermit crabs are small crustaceans that lack a shell and must “borrow” one from another animal. They live on beaches, mud flats and shallow waters throughout the lower Chesapeake Bay.
Three species of hermit crabs can be found in the Chesapeake Bay:
Long-clawed hermit crab, Pagurus longicarpus
Broad-clawed hermit crab, Pagurus pollicaris
Banded hermit crab, Pagurus annulipes
Appearance:
Lacks a shell, so it “borrows” an empty one that originally belonged to another animal, such as a snail, periwinkle or oyster drill
Soft, coiled abdomen that fits tightly inside the “borrowed” shell
One claw is larger than the other
Two pairs of walking legs
Long-clawed hermit crabs have long, narrow claws. The hands of the claws have a darker stripe.
Broad-clawed hermit crabs have a flat major claw with wart-like projections called tubercles
Banded hermit crabs have a hairy major claw. Their legs are banded with brown rings.
The broad-clawed hermit crab is the Bay’s largest hermit crab. The banded hermit crab is the smallest.
Habitat:
Long-clawed hermit crabs are found in shallow waters
Broad-clawed hermit crabs range from deeper flats to open waters
Banded hermit crabs live from the low-tide mark to deep waters
Range:
Found mostly in the Virginia portion of the Chesapeake Bay, south of Tangier Sound
Feeding:
Eats algae, detritus and other tiny particles
Predators:
Preyed upon by larger animals, including fish, blue crabs and large snails
Reproduction and Life Cycle:
Go through several stages before becoming adults
Eggs develop into tiny, free-swimming larvae called zoea
Zoea grow and molt several times before becoming megalops, which are still tiny but have a crustacean-like form
Megalops molt and grow into juveniles
Juveniles continue to molt and grow, eventually becoming adults
As hermit crabs grow, they find larger shells to “borrow”
Other Facts:
Always searching for a larger shell to “borrow.” A hermit crab will sometimes steal a shell from a smaller hermit crab!
It is nearly impossible to pull a hermit crab out of its shell. Hermit crabs wrap their soft abdomen around the inside of the shell to firmly hold themselves in place.
