Hermit crab Hermit crab Hermit crabs are decapod crustaceans of the superfamily Paguroidea. Most of the approximately 1,110 species possess an asymmetrical abdomen that is concealed in a scavenged mollusc shell carried around by the hermit crab. Most species have long, spirally curved abdomens, which are soft, unlike the hard, calcified abdomens seen in related crustaceans. The vulnerable abdomen is protected from predators by a salvaged empty seashell carried by the hermit crab, into which its whole body can retract. Most frequently, hermit crabs use the shells of sea snails (although the shells of bivalves and scaphopods and even hollow pieces of
Long-tailed hermit Long-tailed hermit The long-tailed hermit ("Phaethornis superciliosus") is a large hummingbird that is a resident breeder in Venezuela, the Guianas, and north-eastern Brazil. This species is commonly referred to as the eastern long-tailed hermit, but it is likely, following recommendations from Gary Stiles in February 2006, that the new name will be adopted by most authorities. The taxonomic history of this group is complicated, with similar hermit populations from both sides of the Andes being originally classed as a single long-tailed hermit species. The western population was then split as the western long-tailed hermit, "P. longirostris", leading to the renaming