Sea Urchin Carrying Crab - Dorippe frascone

This Sea Urchin Carrying Crab - Dorippe frascone has a symbiotic relationship with a long-spined sea urchin and carries one around on its carapace by using 2 of its legs. The Crab uses the Sea Urchin as protection and the Sea Urchin benefits from the crab by getting some of its food from the food that the Crab eats as the Crabs are messy eaters.

It is always fun seeing the Crab moving around carrying the Sea Urchin. Usually during day time, the crab is buried in the sand.

comments (6)

Ferdy Christant

Lion

What an absolute highlight, Albert! Hilarious, interesting, and an incredibly detailed capture.
It makes me wonder how such an initial relation starts..."need a ride?" Posted 8 years ago
1. morpheme
  
  Lion
  
  I just saw this guy profiled on a PBS nature program about a week ago -it said they pick the urchins up and carry them around for protection :p - nothing tries to get them so long as they keep those poisonous urchin spines pointing up. The poor urchin apparently doesn't get much out of the deal, beside a ride to somewhere they may or may not want to go.... Posted 8 years ago
2. 1. Ferdy Christant
    
    Lion
    
    lol yeah, I can imagine it not being entirely voluntary. Still better than this though:
    http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2012/05/02/article-0-12E16F52000005DC-127_964x564.jpg Posted 8 years ago
  2. 1. Albert Kang
      
      Lion
      
      Thanks, Ferdy and morpheme for your kind comments :)
      
      Wildlife is so amazing especially when you get to observes their behaviours and antics :D
      A few days ago, I was walking along a road in the outskirt, mostly looking for butterflies when it started to rain/drizzle and I decided to turn back. I passed some bushes and saw something like a twig on a plant with big leafs, decided to take a second look and low and behold, it was a baby Snake! What's amazing about this encounter was because of the rain and small drops of water on the leafs, this baby Snake came out to the open to drink the water droplets. It was an amazing experience for me :) Posted 8 years ago

Ferdy Christant

Lion

Interesting to show your other recent photo where it is the urchin being the chief:

Posted 8 years ago, modified 8 years ago
1. Albert Kang
  
  Lion
  
  Thanks for sharing this other pic here, Ferdy.
  Although in this instance, the Sea Urchin looks like the 'chief' its actually the crab that determines which Sea Urchin it wants to build its 'home'. Usually the crab settled on the Sea Urchin permanently, making it its home by cutting away some of the spines and mostly staying on the 'bald patch'. They also gets protection by living on the Sea Urchin. When the time comes to feed, they crawled to the underside of the Sea Urchin to scavenge the sea bottom for food. Posted 8 years ago

The Carrier crab

''Dorippe frascone'', the urchin crab or carrier crab, is a small species of crab in the family Dorippidae that was first described scientifically by J.F.W. Herbst, in 1785. It is found in the Red Sea and parts of the western and eastern Indian Ocean. It often has a symbiotic relationship with a long-spined sea urchin and carries one around on its carapace.

Info 2 0

Similar species: Decapods

Species identified by Albert Kang