Beautiful
Hawaiian
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SHORE DIVE'N'
on the
Kona Coast

The 7-11 CRAB (Carpillius maculatus) This large xanthid crab gets its name from the dark spots on the body. Count 'em. There's seven, thus the lucky number. These are (or were) common along our coastline, but over harvesting has made them a rare sighting. Only in remote areas are they considered 'common' anymore. Actually, their meat is not all that great, so eating this beautiful crab leaves something to be desired. They have strong pincher-claws, so if you handle them, be careful. Once I found myself screaming underwater as one took hold of my finger in self-defense, as I was foolishly trying to show it to a fellow cyber-diver. When it finally let go, I said, "Thank you!" and haven't touched one since. Their bodies are oval, broader than long, with large strong claws and small legs. We've seen the carapace of this crab as wide as 15 cm.