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Hermit Crab Anatomy: Hermit crabs are crustaceans of the group
Paguroidea, closely related to true crab Decapod having eyes on short stalks and a broad flattened carapace with a small
abdomen folded under the thorax and pincerscrabs of the group Brachyura. Most hermit crabs salvage empty seashells to shelter and
protect their soft abdomen; the region of the body between the thorax and the pelvisabdomens. |
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External Anatomy
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There are about five hundred
known species of hermit crabs in the world; although they are mostly aquatic, there are also some terrestrial species. A number of species,
most notably the King Crab of northern Pacific waters especially along the coasts of Alaska and Japan, have abandoned their seashells for a
free-living life; these species have forms similar to true crabs and are known as carcinized hermit crabs. Other species inhabit shells as
juveniles and abandon them as adults.
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