The blueberry hermit crab is a terrestrial hermit crab endemic to tropical and subtropical islands in the North Pacific, including Kikaijima Island, the Ryukyu Islands, Okinawa, and the Boso Peninsula in Japan, growing to 3 to 4 centimeters in shield length and 7 to 10 centimeters overall, with blue and purple coloring and white or cream eyestalks. It favors beaches with rocky crevices or shrubbery and rocky tidepools and supratidal zones in humid temperatures of 27 to 29 degrees Celsius, and although it lives on land it must return to the ocean to reproduce, with a breeding season lasting as long as three and a half to four months from late May to mid or late September. Its conservation status has not been formally determined, but surveys show low population numbers, and the pet trade poses a concern because most blueberry hermit crabs sold are wild caught.
Facts
Classification
System (Realm) Living or Extinct Scientific Name Connections
Child Taxon Of
Source GBIF Backbone Taxonomy: Coenobita purpureus
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Source Coenobita purpureus (Wikipedia)Distribution: JapanQuote, Distribution: Japan
Coenobita purpureus, commonly known as the Blueberry Hermit Crab, is a terrestrial species of hermit crab endemic to many tropical and subtropical islands in the North Pacific Ocean including Kikaijima Island, Ryukyu Island, Okinawa, and the Boso Peninsula in Japan.
Sources
1. Coenobita purpureus (Wikipedia)
Lead section
The species is popular among aquarium enthusiasts, but due to the encountered difficulty of breeding them in captivity, they are typically wild caught, which could impact the species’ numbers, leading them to become endangered in the near future.
Lead, living organism
Coenobita purpureus, commonly known as the Blueberry Hermit Crab, is a terrestrial species of hermit crab endemic to many tropical and subtropical islands in the North Pacific Ocean including Kikaijima Island, Ryukyu Island, Okinawa, and the Boso Peninsula in Japan.
Habitat and distribution
is a terrestrial species of hermit crab endemic to many tropical and subtropical islands in the North Pacific Ocean
View the Source2. GBIF Backbone Taxonomy: Coenobita purpureus
GBIF Backbone TaxonomyTaxon recordQuote, Taxon record
"canonicalName": "Coenobita purpureus"
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