No sooner had Monterey Bay Aquarium aquarist Todd Love placed two spectacular Puget Sound king crabs on exhibit than it seemed they were multiplying. Or were they?
In fact, the two crabs had molted, shedding their brilliant orange-and-red “exoskeletons” to grow new ones that provide growing room. So Todd could be excused for doing a double-take. He now has the two intact molted shells on a shelf behind-the-scenes.
The actual crabs, meanwhile, are doing just fine in their new suits of clothes.
All told, there are three Puget Sound king crabs (Lopholithodes mandtii) in the crab exhibit of the Deep Reef gallery. Colorful and ornate as they are, these animals can be hard to find because they’re easily mistaken for corals or plant life—so look closely! Even when you spot them, it can be hard to tell which end is up. Look for minute movements of the mouth parts and a pair of small, dark eyes.
Since the Aquarium’s king crabs molted recently, Todd isn’t sure when they’ll do so again. But just in case, he is feeding them crushed sea urchins to provide extra calcium that ensures a strong shell for the next time they do their changing-room trick.
A Crustacean Convention
The Puget Sound king crabs aren’t our only recent additions. Todd also added four squat lobsters (Munida spp). Easily recognized by their long and spindly front legs, these animals hide in crevices and use their claws to scavenge food that drifts by. There are now six species in the crab exhibit, including the Puget Sound king crab, squat lobster, heart crab (Phyllolithodes papillosus), hermit crab (Pagurus spp), spiny king crab (Paralithodes rathbuni) and umbrella crab (Cryptolithodes sitchensis).
A giant sheep crab (Loxorhynchus grandis) was also added to the exhibit next to the giant octopus. Aquarists Adam Frantz and Alan Young collected the 7.7-pound specimen from under Monterey’s commercial wharf. It was so large—about eight inches across the carapace—that they had to team up to wrestle it (carefully) into a collection bag.
“He’s now definitely the king of the sheep crab exhibit,” Adam says.
Lest we forget, another crustacean—a huge California spiny lobster from the Channel Islands—continues to do well in the Enchanted Kelp Forest gallery upstairs from his cousins.
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