Halloween Crab

Gecarcinus quadratus

The Halloween Crab goes by many names, including the Red Land Crab, Whitespot Crab, and Moon Crab. I personally like Halloween Crab though, since it really reflects the interesting colors. They have black carapaces, orange-red legs, and purple claws!

Halloween Crabs live in the Pacific coast mangroves and forests of Central and South America. They actually live in the forests as adults, and return to the ocean in order to reproduce. Did you know that they live as far away as 18 miles (30km)  from water? Not where you normally think Crabs to be!

While living in the forest, the Crabs forage nocturnally for different plant matter, including leaves and sapling. They also dig long burrows into the ground for protection. These burrows can measure nearly 5 ft long!

Halloween Crabs are sometimes kept in captivity, and can be very tricky pets due to their excellent climbing skills.

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IUCN Status : Not Listed

Location : Central and South America
Size : Carapace length 2in (5cm)

Classification : Phylum : Arthropoda -- Subphylum : Crustacea -- Class : Malacostraca
Order : Decapoda -- Family : Gecarcinidae -- Genus : Gecarcinus -- Species : G. quadratus