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The giant hermit crab (Petrochirus diogenes) is a very large marine hermit crab of the western Atlantic. This species occurs from the US East Coast (North Carolina and Florida) through the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean down to Brazil, typically in shallow coastal waters. It lives on sandy or muddy bottoms, seagrass beds or reef rubble, often using discarded shells of large molluscs (e.g. queen conch) as homes . Notably, it can reach about 30 cm body length (making it the largest Atlantic hermit crab) and will even kill and eat queen conch snails to take over their shells. It often carries commensal organisms (like sea anemones or small porcelain crabs) on its shell for camouflage and protection.
The giant hermit crab (Petrochirus diogenes) is a very large marine hermit crab of the western Atlantic. This species occurs from the US East Coast (North Carolina and Florida) through the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean down to Brazil, typically in shallow coastal waters. It lives on sandy or muddy bottoms, seagrass beds or reef rubble, often using discarded shells of large molluscs (e.g. queen conch) as homes . Notably, it can reach about 30 cm body length (making it the largest Atlantic hermit crab) and will even kill and eat queen conch snails to take over their shells. It often carries commensal organisms (like sea anemones or small porcelain crabs) on its shell for camouflage and protection.