Some people take a lifetime to raise the money to buy a house, while crabs often find shelter in a matter of seconds. These animals can carve their shells and excrete erosive chemicals, allowing them to create a smooth, spacious interior. It is common to see hermit crabs on beaches, but many of these charismatic crustaceans have a hidden surprise: like the ability to build houses quickly. On this occasion, a kind of igloo on what looks like the beachfront is what makes this crab.
Crabs Take 30 Seconds to Build a House
In the recording that has been published by the Viral Hog channel on YouTube, you can see how a specimen of marine life digs a small hole on a beach in Vietnam and puts a type of roof on top of it. The speed with which he did it surprised Internet users. He needed only about 30 seconds to put in the last bit of sand and finish his construction work. But how does he do it so quickly and well?
When the little crabs dig a hole, they use their claws to roll the wet sand into a ball. They create tunnels through the surface after the tides recede, creating wet, grainy burrows and quickly transforming a quiet, picturesque beach into a plain of sand balls, as well as being a refuge for them.
Crabs blend easily into the environment as their exterior matches the tone of the sand and they have perfect claws for digging and sifting grains. At low tide, a sand bubbler crab will emerge from the mouth of a burrow, surveying the beach to make sure it is safe to emerge. It will then clean the sand around the burrow by pushing it with its paws.
This story was written in Spanish by Perla Vallejo in Ecoosfera
