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Article: Red crab invasion. (Christmas Island)
- Article from:
- Ranger Rick
- Article date:
- January 1, 1998
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1998 National Wildlife Federation. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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A creeping carpet of bright red crabs adds a holiday touch to a tiny tropical island.
Christmas Island is decorated in holiday colors each year, starting in November. The green is always there--from the leafy rainforest. But the red is from 120 million red crabs suddenly on the go!
For days, this lonely island way out in the ocean (see map on page 9) will be crawling with crabs. The ones that go through town flood over roads and railroad tracks, run up stairs and through houses, crawl under beds and into closets, and climb up walls, across ceilings, and into sinks. The schoolboys in the photo at left show off crabs they've captured in the classroom!
If ...