Coconut Crab (Birgus latro)

Coconut crabs are large relatives of hermit crabs that live on islands throughout the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Of the decapods, they are the most adapted to living on land. With long, hooked legs, they can easily climb palm trees to reach their favorite foods - seeds and palm fruits. They possess a modified form of gill that can be continuously rehydrated by their hind legs to enable them to respirate on land throughout their entire lives. In fact they only live in the water during the larval stage of their life cycle. On the Northern Mariana Islands, coconut crabs are referred to as “ayuyu” and have a great cultural significance. To the people on these islands, they are one of the several animal shapes that a deceased person can take in their tradition of taotaomo’na - the belief that the spirits of ancestors can return in animal form.