Question

In some regions, robber crabs are being threatened because they’re popular delicacies in restaurants and common souvenirs for tourists. Why do you think it’s important to preserve these crabs? Can you think of another environmental condition that could affect the population of these crabs?

Answer 1

Robber crabs eat other crabs, which likely controls the smaller crabs’ population. They also break down and digest plant matter in the ecosystem. That water pollution could negatively harm these crabs, especially if it occurs where young larvae live. Pollution could kill or harm some or all of the larvae, causing a drop in their population.

Answer 2

The preservation of the robber crabs is important mainly because of the well-being of the ecosystem in which they are part of. By eliminating the robber crabs from their ecosystem will cause an disproportional rise in number in certain species, but also a big decline in others, altering the ecosystem, and maybe causing extermination of other species as well.

Also, from a business perspective, it is important that there are restrictions on the crab hunting. If they go extinct, the restaurants will lose one of their biggest delicacies, while the people that sell souvenirs will lose one of their most sold out product.

Another problem that can cause the decline in the robber crab populations is the pollution. The pollution manages to change the composition of the water, introduces toxins, and also some hard waste can directly trap or injure the robber crabs, as well as the other organisms.