Young children are facinated by hermit crabs. Here are some interesting hermit crab facts:
- Hermit Crabs are not 'true' crabs. They are decapod (10 legged) crustaceans, in the same taxonomic class as crabs, lobsters, and shrimp.
- There are approximately 500 known species of Hermit Crabs. Most are aquatic, but a few, 15 species, are terrestrial and often seen as pets in ECE classrooms. It is relatively easy to keep small aquatic hermit crabs in a cold, salt water classroom aquarium.
- Hermit Crabs have a soft abdomen, so they use the discarded shells of snails for protection. They must find a bigger shell when they out grow the one they are in.
- Hermit crab species range in size, from a species with a carapace only a few millimeters long to Coenobita brevimanus which can approach the size of a coconut!
There are many, many resources for teachers about hermit crabs:
- http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/invertebrates/crustacean/Hermitcrab.shtml Enchanted Learning page about Hermit Crabs, including an excellent diagram of all the parts.
- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jZe_VGLRYI A video of a hermit crab changing shells.
- Pet Hermit Crab (First Step Nonfiction) by Robin Nelson
- Hermit Crab's Home: Safe in a Shell, by Janet Halfmann
- Does Anyone Know Where a Hermit Crab Goes? by Michael Glaser
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