AYUYU
COCONUTCRAB Regulated Species
Native Species
Birguslatro
PhotoORobertF Myers
is a verypopulardishat fiestasandfamilypartiesbecause of its crabor ayuyuas it is calledin Chamorro, Coconut mostarecaptured by taste.lt cangrowquitelarge,witha legspanof up to threefeet(90cm).However, delicious closeto thissize, crabhuntersbeforetheygetanywhere gianthermitcrabsthatbegintheirlifein thesea. Adultfemaleslaytheireggsin thesea. The Ayuyuarebasically eggshatchintotinylarvaethatdriftwiththe currentsfor a few monthsbeforesettlingto the bottomwherethey andcrawlupon thebeach.At thistime,theylookvery intotinycrabs.They then climbinto a seashell transform anddependon theirownhardshellfor protection. muchlikehermitcrabs.Soontheyleavetheirseashell Theayuyudigsholesinwhichtheyhideduringtheday.At nighttheycomeoutto lookforfood.Theywilleatalmost fruits,plantsandrottenwood.Theirfavorite food,of course,is coconut. Usingtheirstrongclaws, anything including withcoconut theytearawaythetoughcoconuthuskandthen,somehow, crackthenutinside.lf youarenotfamiliar strongclawsthatcangripandtearanyobjectwithinreach. crabs,do nottryto captureone.Theyhaveincredibly Youngayuyumaybeeatenbysomeofthepredators otherthanhumans. enemies Fullgrownayuyuhavenonatural Ayuyugrowveryslowlyand pigs, lizards. andmonitor wild dogs, to theisland,suchas rats, thatpeoplehavebrought OnGuam,giantayuyuarerarelndevensmalloneshavebecomehardto find. ln some areeasiiyoverharvesLO. must however, itsshell(orcarapace) places,theycanno longerbe found.Theayuyumaybe huntedyear-round, penalty up to a of and carries is crabs illegal sized Taking under (7.5 inches across. cm) or more measure three jail, or both. $500or 90 daysin
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through TheoriginalFish& WildlifeFactSheetswerefirstcreatedandfirstproduced Program, administered bytheDivision ofAquatic theSportFish&Wildli{eRestoration of theDepartment ofAgriculture in collaboration withtheGuam & WildliJe Resources Programof the BureauoJPlanning. Thisfourthprinting(May Coastallvlanagement Proteclron Agencypursuanl to the 2002)wasfundedby the GuamEnvironmental Protection AgencyAward# M009063-02 throughthe UnitedStatesEnvironmentai Education Committee oftheWaterPlanning Committee. Allinquiries Environmental 192 DairyRoad, may be sentto the Divisionof Aquatic& WildlifeResources, lvlangilao. Guam96913.Tocontactthemby phone{671)735-3955/6.
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