Woman Offers Large Shell to Hermit Crab Living Inside a Piece of PVC Pipe. Here’s What Happened

Human beings often tend to have a blatant apathy for other life except their own. Plastic pollution has penetrated the darkest depths of vast oceans, global warming is melting ice sheets that have existed for millions of years, and fossil fuel burning is pumping up the earth’s atmosphere with hot gases– all for the benefit of one species. Yet, we are shocked when we see plants and wildlife suffering from the consequences. But one kind woman, Krys Amill (@krys.amill) from Puerto Rico has offered a peak into the potential of restoration of habitats and wildlife conservation with a simple effort posted on Instagram.

Amill was on a casual stroll on the vegetated coast of Islote, Arecibo in Puerto Rico when her eyes caught an unusual sight. She had spotted a hermit crab taking shelter in a PVC pipe shaped like an asthma inhaler, as documented in the viral video. Taken aback by the plastic bit walking on its own on the beach, Amill halted her walk to investigate. She observed several tiny orange legs pointing out of the pipe’s opening and instantly knew what was going on. 

The unfortunate scenario showed the hermit crab trying to adjust itself into the narrow pipe. It barely fit into the L-shaped pipe and most of its legs fell out of the opening providing incomplete protection from its predators like birds or animals. “This is the saddest thing on the planet. This hermit crab is in his home. You can see he doesn’t have space,” she explained in Spanish while holding up the crab still inside the pipe, as reported by The Dodo. Amill was more than happy to relocate the tiny crustacean to a safer home. 

She carried it to her home and tried searching for an appropriate-sized mollusk shell, which hermit crabs usually inhabit for protection, on the beach but luck was not on her side. Amill did not give up and reached out to her neighbors for help. Thankfully, one of them had a large shell to spare for the rescue hermit crab. “[A] neighbor had this [shell]. We’re going to see if it fits him. I’m not sure if it’ll be too big,” she added in the video. Amill did not try to force the crab into the new shell but rather waited for it to accept it naturally. She placed the shell beside the crab in a large blue tub and left it alone for a while. Upon returning, Amill was exhilarated to find that the hermit crab was safely tucked into the new shell.

She was initially doubtful if the trick would work but her neighbor suggested they step away from the shell as she figured the crab might feel threatened by their presence. Finally, Amill and her neighbor's plan fruition. “Look at him! He needed space. Now, he has his house!” Amill rejoiced. She took the crab and his new home back to the coast while jumping for joy. She provided a close-up glimpse of the crab before releasing it into the grass, and the crab gave a little wave to her seemingly thanking her for the effort. “Mission accomplished! This is a happy hermit crab,” Amill quipped in conclusion. Meanwhile, she had collected another similar shell and handed it over to her neighbor to rescue another hermit crab in the future. 

You can follow @krys.amill on Instagram for more interesting rescue missions.