MEXICO: A coconut crab has hold on the Hawaii Island. The crab has been declared as an unlawful invasive species and trading or keeping the crab would be charged as an offence. The crab was caught by a resident of Oahu and was put in a cardboard box.
The Hawaii Department of Agriculture (HDOA) officials came and took it. The officials said that the crab weighed three pounds and was 16 inches long.The HDOA stated that this is the first time a coconut crab has been spotted in Hawaii since 1989.
According to media reports, Ron Toonen, professor at Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology at University of Hawaii stated that this crab is of the size of a trash can and is capable of ripping things apart.
Toonen told KHON2, “Three feet is as big as a trash can. Literally, as big as a trash can. That’s why people are worried about it having it show up here. A crab that big can do damage if it’s wandering around trying to find things to eat”.
Toonen added that this specie can raid people’s trash cans, eat native birds, eat juvenile plants and also tear up the landscape if they grow in numbers in Hawaii. This is so as these creatures can grab a hold of things and can rip them open. As their name suggests these can also bust open a coconut.
Until now, the origin of the captured crab is not known but it is likely that someone had him as an illegal pet then released the crab or it escaped.
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