[6] The crab abdomen is spiral shaped,[5] and can twist and is flexible, so they can fit easily and comfortably into the different shells they take on throughout their life.

[9] Throughout their lifetime hermit crabs use and adopt empty mollusk and gastropod shells, such as cats eyes, snails and periwinkles[3] to protect their soft and vulnerable abdomens.

[2] In New Zealand there are more than 60 known species of hermit crab,[5] predominantly found along the coastline in tidal rock pools and estuaries.

They are generally restricted to areas, usually the estuary where strong tidal activity takes place and the salinity of the water remains continuously high enough to support the crab's requirements.

[5] After the moult this results in an increase in the hermit crabs size so it must find a larger shell to house its body.

[13] During the searching process there is very high demand for shells as the crabs want to find a new home as quickly as they can so that they are safe from predators.

The hermit crab protects the eggs inside of its shell out of dangers reach until the embryo development is fully complete.

The larvae take weeks to months to grow, going through several different larval processes until they reach the final stages where they can occupy a small part of a broken snail shell.

[5] They sometimes partially bury themselves into the sediment and feed on the organic matter,[3] as well as algae, immobile invertebrates and filtered plankton and food particles.

Hermit crabs sometimes brace themselves over their prey using their walking legs to make it easier to rip pieces of flesh away from the animal.

[14] Because the hermit crab lives in the bottom of rock pools and ocean floors, and due to its size, its predator list is long.