We all know that crabs aren’t the cutest animals in the world. But the animals you’ll discover now are straight-up frightening. Arachnophobia isn’t the rarest phobia in the world because a lot of people suffer from it. It’s fair to assume that these creepy ocean creatures might make this particular phobia of scary spiders even more common. Get ready, because, in this post, You’ll learn all the facts about the Japanese Spider Crab.
One Japanese Spider Crab got a bit lost one time
One time, a particularly lost Japanese Spider Crab was found far away from its natural habitat. It was found over 1,000 kilometers south in Su-ao, in Eastern Taiwan. It’s most likely that this unlucky fellow was swept away by a storm, or he got a ride on a fishing boat somehow and ended up where none of his relatives ever went before.
It has been described as a “slow and stupid creature”
What has been described as an “ugly giant crab that lives off the coast of Japan,” used to be the extreme fear of Japanese fishermen. Whenever they had to dive to the bottom of the ocean, they feared that the giant crab would swallow them alive.
There is nothing to fear about however as they are pretty much incapable of harming a human being. Their long legs are only able to kill small sea creatures and their claws to open mussels or shells. Therefore, an issue in “Popular Science” dating from 1920 ironically called them a “Slow and stupid creature.”
Тhey like cold water
It’s not really sure which temperature the Japanese Spider Crab prefers. They don’t seem to mind hotter water when the mating season starts. It’s generally believed though, since they remain at a depth of around 300 meters (980 ft), that they prefer a temperature of about 10 °C (50 °F). Even though they can tolerate temperatures of about 6 to 16 °C (43 to 61 °F), they are usually held in aquariums at this temperature.
What are Japanese Spider Crabs?
The Japanese Spider Crab also referred to as the “Macrocheira kaempferi” or takaashigani in Japanese (“long-legged crab”), is a type of crab that lives in the ocean around Japan. It has extremely long legs and resembles a giant spider. The name “Long-legged crab” wasn’t invented for no reason. This type of crab has huge legs compared to its small carapace. This gives it a particularly creepy look.
Japanese Spider Crabs get very old
The diet they have must be very healthy because Japanese Spider Crabs can become as old as human beings. Better yet, if they don’t get killed by a predator such as an octopus and die a natural death, the chances of them living longer than a century is much higher than for us!
They are scavengers pur sang
If you look at a Japanese Spider Crab then you can’t help to think that they look kind of clumsy. These long legs surely don’t do them any good in terms of hunting for prey. Their most favorite hobby is to scour the ocean floor to find the dead bodies of recently deceased animals and use their long legs to pick them apart.
Will I ever come eye to eye with any of these?
You’re chilling on a Japanese beach not too far from your comfortable hotel in Tokyo. It’s a hot summer day and you walk towards the beach bar to order some mojitos. And then it happens, one of those long-legged monsters is sharpening its claws, ready to attack and have a battle royale with you in your swim shorts.
