Seaquaria

What the Fish! May 2026 Newsletter -

What The Fish! Seaquaria Newsletter Subscribe to our monthly newsletter to keep up-to-date on community and school events!

Hey there! 👋🏻 It’s been a while, but welcome back to another Creature Feature Friday! Today we are highlighting a critter we have recently started bringing into the classroom - please say hello to our sweet Red Fur Crab (Acantholithodes hispidus)! 🦀

The red fur crab has quite a few common names including “spiny lithode crab”, “hairy spined crab”, and “fuzzy crab”. If you couldn’t tell by the plethora of names it’s been given, this crab has lots and lots of hairs covering its body and legs.

Its carapace (back part of the main shell) is pear shaped, and their claws are typically bright orange/red with some distinct molar-like teeth on the inside of their claws (see second slide). 🦷🦷

Interestingly, this species is a small type of king crab which makes it more closely related to hermit crabs rather than true crabs (such as red rock and dungeness crabs)! 🐚🦀

What a cutie! 🥹