Why do crabs move sideways

A crab's exoskeleton is essential for protecting it from hungry predators. However strange a crabs' walk may look to us, the combination of restricted leg movement with a strong exoskeleton is obviously a successful one for them to have evolved in this way.

All crabs have ten legs, two of which have developed into very large and powerful claws, used for grasping their food and fighting each other.

Crabs often loose their claws during these fights. Crabs belong to a group of animals known as the Crustacea. Like it? Share with your friends!

C'est marrant. C'est triste. Ca fait peur. J'ai appris quelque chose. Rien compris. Merci de me suivre sur le chemin de la connaissance, vous verrez, c'est un puits sans fond :. Facebook Google Twitter. Connect with:. Cool runnings: does sprinting or walking conserve more heat in the cold? Eggsperiment 4: Walking on eggshells. Biology Medicine. Babu's mysterious medical case.

Your name. Leave this field blank. Support Us! Make a donation to support the Naked Scientists. Forum discussions Do memories exist after death? What are some low-tech ways to address climate change? Humans navigate inefficiently in cities. Hydrogen electrolyser wins Earthshot Prize. I love that wonderopoplis taught me how crabs legs work and that it is totally different than us humans.

Thank you wonderopoplis! This showed me what the difference is in a crabs legs and human legs,and I think the inventor of wonderopoplis for inventing this amazingly awesome website. Thank you wonderopoplis!!!!! Sep 21, Thanks for commenting, jjljbhg! We are glad you are here at Wonderopolis! Meme Sep 19, Sep 19, Thanks for joining us, Meme! Sep 18, Hey, tutles! Gabriel Sep 14, DiamondLeoperd77 Sep 16, Sep 16, Sep 15, We're excited to hear that you liked it, Gabriel!

Goodwinner17 Sep 14, Leylab Sep 14, Lucy Sep 14, Crabs a cool I think it's kinda weird to walk sideways but the have more feet than us.

Sep 14, Edwards' First Graders Sep 14, Thank you Wonderopolis for another super cool wonder to get our brains going. The video was really good, and we thought the way they caught the crabs was pretty neat.

So we invented some other things that would help you catch crabs. We made a crab decoy that would sit in a net, a crab detector that you drove on the water, a bridge that had bait and a trap door, a strong claw that would protect your hands when you grabbed a crab, a cage with a strong door, and lots more. Isabel Sep 13, David Sep 13, Hey there, David! We have crabby days, too!

We hope you have a better day today! Potatoes Sep 13, Whoa so I thought it was just hermit crabs not well plain crabs that walk sideways!! Isn't it fun to learn new things, Potatoes?! We're glad you commented.

Raji Sep 13, I actually knew that hermit crabs walked sideways but i didn't know that crabs had knees that bent sideways. I always know when and how to find the write wonder to read about. Thanks for the wonder. Leyla Sep 14, Sep 13, We're glad to hear you learned some new things, Raji!

Talk to you again soon! Kadence Fraizer Sep 13, Isn't it fun to learn new things, Kadence? Aiden Sep 13, We're glad you learned some new things with us about crabs, Aiden!