(Børsabergan - The Trondheim fjord / 33 meters / 10.03.2004)

Phylum: Arthropoda

Class: Crustacea

Subclass: Malacostraca

Order: Decapoda

Suborder: Pleocyemata

Infraorder: Anomura

Family: Paguridae

 

Norwegian: eremittkreps

Typical for the hermit crabs is their soft, unprotected abdomens which they hide inside an empty shell. As the grow, they have to replace the shell with larger ones. Some species have a twisted abdomen, adapted to fit into a particular kind of shell. Some hermit crabs do not use a shell at all, but an anemone with stinging threads to protect themselves.