The wonderful horror of hermit crabs migrating

Maggie Koerth 10:39 am Tue Sep 11, 2012

The hills are alive with the sound of scuttling.

This video has popped up on lots of sites already, but I kind of love it and wanted to post here. Plus, it made me curious. Where are all those crabs going? And why?

The answers, upon reflection, are rather obvious. They are going to the sea. They are going there to get laid.

Yes, it's hermit crab spring break—set to an epic classical soundtrack—as thousands upon thousands of land-dwelling crabs travel to the ocean to meet other crabs and have sex with them.

Wondrous, isn't it?

Read more:

Hermit crab mating habits from the book Hermit Crabs, by Sue Fox

Annual migrations and spawning of the common land hermit crab; a research paper documenting this phenomenon as it happens in Puerto Rico. Crab love looks much the same all over the world.

Possible sign of life on Venus

Astronomers reported today that they've detected phosphine in the atmosphere of Venus, a possible biosignature of life on the planet. The researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of… READ THE REST
Startling, beautiful, and weird close-up images of our Sun

Using Europe's largest solar telescope, GREGOR, researchers captured these incredible images of details on the surface of the sun. Above is a sunspot while the image below "reveals intricate structures… READ THE REST
Programmable, 3D-printed fabric that can "remember" its original shape and transform into new ones

Imagine that your jacket changes shape depending on the temperature or your socks can provide additional support with the push of a button. Harvard engineers created a new material using… READ THE REST
Short Post, just one paragraph

Dessert cheesecake wafer bear claw fruitcake. Fruitcake chupa chups donut candy canes marzipan. Apple pie sweet roll tart chocolate cake macaroon marshmallow carrot cake gummi bears sweet. Pastry sugar plum… READ THE REST
Save 50% on a 1-year subscription to Dashlane's premium password manager

We all know vital information about ourselves and our private digital accounts can be compromised by cybercriminals. However, many would be frightened to know just how compromised they and their… READ THE REST
The Bite Helper removes the itch of a mosquito bite in seconds

While mosquitoes have certainly earned their title as the deadliest animal on earth, their impact on most of our lives is usually a lot less consequential. But even though they… READ THE REST