Christmas Island Red Crab Facts

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Christmas island red crab facts. Click on the tabs below for more information about the christmas island red crabs. These wonderful bright red crabs grow to about 11 cm wide. Christmas island red crab facts. The christmas island red crab gecarcoidea natalis is a species of land crab that is endemic to christmas island and cocos keeling islands in the indian ocean.

More than 20 land crab species live on christmas island including an estimated 45 million red crabs who shape and maintain the health of the island s unique rainforests. Christmas island red crabs are famous throughout australia and the world for their bright red color and for their spectacular annual migration to the sea. How many crabs are there on christmas island. Today i am writing about a festive animal called the christmas island red crab.

Although restricted to a relatively small area an estimated 43 7 million adult red crabs once lived on christmas island alone but the accidental introduction of the yellow crazy ant is believed to have killed about 10 15 million. During migration red crabs climb over and around obstacles in their way following the same migration paths. The red crab is a christmas island australia original found nowhere else in the world. They eat almost anything that they can get their pincers on including leaves fruit flowers.

The christmas island red crab gecarcoidea natalis is a land crab famous for its epic annual mass migration to the sea to spawn once numerous on christmas island crab numbers have been devastated by the accidental introduction of the yellow crazy ant. It is time to learn about the christmas island red crabs or gecarcoidea natalis in scientific terms which could be called also the travelling crabs these creatures are land crabs that are endemic to christmas islands and the keeling islands in the indian ocean moreover they are quite important in their homelands since around 120 million individuals cover the base of the rainforest and. Röda krabba på julön gecarcoidea natali är en landkrabba känd för in epika årliga mavandring till havet för att leka. Christmas island s mass red crab migration is one of the most incredible natural processes on earth.

The christmas island red crab is by far the most obvious of the 14 species of land crabs found on christmas island. Here are five interesting facts about them. Robber crab birgus latro. Millions of crabs become rivers of red as they move from the island s interior rainforests to the ocean to breed and lay eggs.

It s a truly spectacular sight that world renowned naturalist sir david attenborough described as one of his greatest tv moments. Some of the land crabs you might see here are. Every year millions of these large crabs emerge from the forest and make their way to the ocean to breed swarming across roads streams rocks and beaches.