Arthropods of St. John III

Hermit crabs range from these little guys, scavenging the back end of rocks along the shoreto the landlubbers known as “soldier crabs,” which can get up to baseball sized, shell (usually the West Indian topshell or whelk as below) included.These are the ones who swarm out of the mountains in August to mate by the sea.

There is another land crab, not a hermit, which I only caught glimpses of. Mud around their nest holes is evidence of recent activity below.They are still hunted for food so their shyness is excusable.