I was speaking to my travel agent the other day and she emailed me a picture of these giants crabs that, I will admit, freaked me out a little. To be fair, she did warn me that these crabs freaked her out also, so I knew what I was getting myself into when I asked to see a picture of the giant crab. Now the main reason that I was freaked out, was because they looked like a spider, and spiders have always been creepy to me, ever since I saw the movie Arachnophobia when I was younger! The official name of these giant crabs, is actually the Spider Crab, another inventive name, and they can have legs up to 3.8 metres long and can weigh up to 19 kilograms! However the average length of their legs is generally 1 to 1.2 metres. Thankfully these creatures are mainly found off the coast of Japan, which is a decent distance from Australia, so there is no need for me to start expecting to see them if I swim in the beaches around Victoria.
One thing that is a little worrying is that they can have a life span of up to 100 years! That really is a long time for a spider looking creature to live. The one thing that I like most about spiders, is that they usually have a life span of only two years, often less. However spiders are much more prolific breeders than Spider Crabs, so I think that it probably evens out a little in the end. To be fair it is said that the Spider Crab has a gentle disposition, which means that I really shouldn't be worried about getting attacked by one, so their lifespan shouldn't disturb me or even concern me. However that doesn't stop them from looking creepy!
To see a picture of the Spider Crab check out Google Images, or to read more about them check out Wikipedia.
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