A camper spending the night in Okinawa, Japan, woke to find a giant coconut crab making off with his knife in the middle of the night. The man reports that he heard a scratching sound outside his tent, and upon investigating, found the creature carrying his tool away from the campsite.
The man uploaded a video of the encounter to Tiktok. The crab can be seen slowly carrying his best camping knife away before the camper gently removes it.
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The coconut crab (which, as Newsweek notes, is also known as the robber crab) can grow to have a leg span of over a meter, and is a relative of the hermit crab, which uses empty shells and other objects for protection. This is a trait both species share as juveniles, but as adults, coconut crabs develop their own tough exoskeletons and move from the ocean to the land.
As the Natural History Museum explains, the crabs take their name from their preferred diet of green coconuts, which they crack with their strong claws (no need for knives). However, they are omnivores, and will also take rats, other crabs, and even birds.
'It's an adaptation because of their food source," said Miranda Lowe, principal curator of crustacea at the museum. "On land, some of the time they have to find something else other than coconuts."
The crabs rarely attack humans, and like most animals, prefer to keep their distance from people. They can display aggressive behavior when threatened, so if you encounter one it's best to stay back and appreciate it from a distance.
