With legs long enough to straddle a Buick, this sea monster plucked from the depths of the Pacific Ocean, measures a staggering ten feet from claw to claw. It currently resides in Britain at the National Sea Life Centre in Birmingham, and retains the honor of being the biggest crab ever seen.
Of the genus arthopod (Macrocheira kaempferi in Latin) this creature is still growing and could live up to 100 years, its legs eventually reaching fifteen feet! It is not known how old the crab is, and its body is the size of a basketball.
Dubbed “Crabzilla” for obvious reasons; had Jules Verne seen this creature perhaps he might have chosen it over the killer squid in Twenty Thousand Leagues under The Sea.
This giant crab is a lethal and fearful predator in ocean depths of up to 2,500 feet, but out of the water looks weak and limp because its limbs are so heavy that the body can’t support it.
In the ebb and flow of the balance of nature, this big fellow has its enemies as well, but they all have two feet and open mouths. Salted and steamed, the Japanese Spider Crab is considered a delicacy in Japan, although they are banned in the spring when they lay their eggs.
“It is rumored these crabs can grow to four meters (about 14 feet) across. Our open-topped ray tank has the icy cold waters Crabzilla needs, and will be his home until the end of March. He absolutely dwarfs the other crabs in there, but he’s not aggressive and they should have nothing to worry about,” says Graham Burrows, curator of the National Sea Life Centre.
The front limbs of the Japanese Spider Crab are feeding arms, with each one measuring over five feet long and ending in sizeable claws.
It would seem that the Elizabethan bearded bard we all know and love said it more aptly than anyone ever could: “There more things in heaven and earth, my dear Horatio, than are dreamt of…”
What do YOU think about this?
(Link)
jane.
so it's still alive?
jokester321
Hey Its jokester321 i put random comments everywere so all i have to say is my life long story
First I was Born
Then I Was Here
And thats my life long story
P.S I like avocados
Crystal Awards
live up to 100 years ??? ten feet out of fifteen, so it’s about 67 years old ?
runners up award
is that how people work out your age crystal? "hmmmm humans live to around 80 and grow on average to 5'11", here we have 6' tall human he must be 81"
Nagha
True, but humans eventually stop growing. I'm pretty sure that crabs contineue to grow their entire lives.
Buddhaelt
That's funny 'runners up'! …..but then again, some people are hilarious, huh crystal…..send more formulas
Amazed
lol..what? you cannot be serious
Crabluva'
mmmmmm…..
codysucks
has red lobster herd of this yet?
shane
wow… this makes me really curious about going to the museums now. i wonder if it will mysteriously ‘disappear’ and end with a day that all the workers are full in the stomach. haha. nahh… its too ugly to eat. O_o
hardy
that makes me hungry
Carter Richard Steinke
Mmmmm, giant crab. I bet he's tasty!
Cartman
CRAB PEOPLE!!!
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noah waldo likes connie simmopolis
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hahah crabbbb
alah 892
that is freaking huge
Minecraft addict
I once saw two of those beasts in an aquarium and they were so freaking big! Those are what I would call real aliens.
Jaime Winborne York
Omg
free
The Japanese spider crab is an omnivore, consuming both plant matter and animals. It also sometimes acts as a scavenger consuming dead animals. Some have been known to scrape the ocean floor for plants and algae while others pry open the shells of mollusks.