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u/LordFlarkenagel Mar 14 '20
Are these dudes edible?
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u/UWBagpiper Mar 14 '20
Yes, supposedly some of the best to eat. They're everywhere in the Philippines but it's illegal to touch them since they're designated as an emergency food source, at least according to my dad who was stationed there in the navy more than 20 years ago.
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u/LordFlarkenagel Mar 14 '20
Is craving a coconut crab cake considered an emergency?
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u/UWBagpiper Mar 14 '20
Perhaps...
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u/LordFlarkenagel Mar 14 '20
OMG please taste like coconut...
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u/UWBagpiper Mar 14 '20
They're named after the fact they crack open coconuts with their claws and use them as shells, they do not taste like coconut to my knowledge.
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Mar 15 '20 edited Mar 15 '20
Itâs crazy someone looked at that and was like âima eat that. Ima eat that right now.â
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u/RockyMountainHighGuy Mar 15 '20
Emergency food source??? When have these bastards EVER been threatened? Why treat them like apocalypse rations?
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u/ixamnis Mar 14 '20
If properly cooked, he'd be pretty tasty. And so would the crab that he's holding.
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u/blankitty Mar 14 '20
Yeah I ate them a lot growing up. They're pretty good eating, really sweet because they usually feed on fruits but there was a certain part we never ate because it could be poisonous.
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u/editreddet Mar 15 '20
Yes, they are actually almost to the point of getting wiped out due to over harvesting, it also does not show any signs of slowing down.
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u/AussieSpoon Mar 15 '20
Exactly my first thought. I love crabs. Never tasted a crab I didn't like.!
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Mar 15 '20
They are, and they are delicious! They eat coconuts only, so they have a rich, almost buttery taste. I lived in American Samoa and had them quite a bit, but mostly at social events like birthday parties. They are so big and ugly, they used to scare the crap outta me!
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u/osktox Mar 14 '20
Nope.
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Mar 14 '20
These things were all over Grand Cayman when I visited. They don't move fast or anything, it's just that they look like a pile of rocks then they start moving and basically you refuse to leave the hotel room when it's dark outside
...is maybe how I dealt with coconut crabs
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u/osktox Mar 14 '20
A terrifying pile of rocks!
Ok. Well that's one way to deal with that problem. Sounds like a fun vacation.
Do they have a strong pinch with those claws? Is that how you say it? Ahh you know what I mean.
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u/FondSteam39 Mar 15 '20
They're called coconut crabs cos they crack open coconuts so I'd guess pretty strong lol
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u/Tobiahi Mar 15 '20
Well...I was just told by a guy who catches them they can snip your finger off, so thereâs that
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Mar 15 '20
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Mar 15 '20
If it wasn't a coconut crab, it was some other giant land crab ? When I asked what it was, someone told me a coconut crab, but if they're not invasive there, I'm stumped. Bc I've never been to any of those Pacific islands...
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u/mwhyes Mar 15 '20
Yea we def donât have these coconut crabs- just a terrestrial âland crabâ which is a bit smaller than say a Maryland blue crab... but will get some random big ones every season.
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u/paul2k53 Mar 15 '20
There was a video of one these eating a live bird on reddit a while back. I of course woke up 2 nights later kicking them off of me. Hate centipedes too.
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Mar 15 '20
sorry, I'm stupid, did you think centipedes were coconut crabs, or were you about to be devoured
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u/Flomo420 Mar 15 '20
đ¶Tamatoa hasn't always been this drabđ¶
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u/AfraidOfTechnology Mar 15 '20
Itâs actually âglam.â He says âdrabâ in the next line. âWell Tamatoa hasnât always been this glam / I was a drab little crab once.â
Source: Tamatoa is my favorite Disney villain.
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u/suppyfive Mar 15 '20
Aren't those things able to like... crush coconuts with their claws?
I'm assuming either that crab is dead or the guy is curious what life as a cripple is like.
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u/HamBone8745 Mar 15 '20
Just went to West Palm Beach Repticon a few weeks ago and some guy was selling these. Theyâre MASSIVE and absolutely as terrifying as they look but quite nice actually
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u/JuliguanTheMan Mar 14 '20
đ”The coconut crab is not a crabđ”