Shellfish shell donations required to house hermit crabs at Mu Koh Lanta park

The "hermit crab" is a creature that is a cross between a crab and a shrimp. When fully grown, they are about 13 centimetres in size and have a total of 10 legs, similar to sea crabs, but the rear part of their body is soft, requiring them to dwell in shells to protect against danger and maintain moisture in their bodies, officials said.

Hermit crabs cannot stay in water for long periods because their respiratory process is developed to directly intake oxygen on land. Even though they live near the shore and have to dip into seawater to absorb calcium and minerals, staying in the water for too long can lead to their demise. Additionally, they require fresh water for survival, park officials said.

Hermit crabs consume plant and animal remains as well as coral debris on the beach as their primary diet, effectively decomposing both bacteria and disease. This makes them crucial beach cleaners vital to the ecosystem.

They also contribute to fertilising the beach and also help in dispersing plant seeds along the shore. Typically, hermit crabs tend to forage more during the night than during the day, often hiding under moist leaf litter during the daytime. If not affected by various threats, hermit crabs can live for up to 60 years, park authorities said.

Recently, Mu Koh Lanta National Park, in collaboration with Phulay Bay, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve, organised a project to provide homes for the hermit crabs. They collected over 100 kilograms of shellfish shells and distributed to the hermit crabs in Mu Koh Lanta National Park.

The project to provide homes for hermit crabs stemmed from the fact that Mu Koh Lanta National Park is an area with a large population of hermit crabs. Some of these crabs lack homes or shellfish shells, thus resorting to using sea debris as their shelters, park authorities said.

Therefore, Mu Koh Lanta National Park initiated a campaign to collect shellfish shells, aiming to increase homes for hermit crabs and enhance marine resources, particularly for the hermit crabs in the Lanta Islands, Krabi province.

Only Gastropoda shells, including freshwater and marine shells of all sizes, are accepted as donations. The focus is on collecting discarded shells from consumption or shell mobile. They do not support the collection of shells from beaches for donation, as they don't want to transfer shells from one beach to another, which would disrupt the natural balance of those areas.

Mu Koh Lanta National Park will gather suitable shell donations from contributors and distribute them to businesses interested in participating in the activity. These businesses will then place the shells in appropriate locations for hermit crabs to use as homes.

Those interested in the project to provide homes for hermit crabs can send their donations to:

Mu Koh Lanta National Park

59, Moo 5, Koh Lanta National Park,

Koh Lanta Yai, Koh Lanta district,

Krabi, 81150

Phone: 075-656576