Nov 23, 2016 · Its handshake could crush your fingers. A giant crab from the Asia-Pacific region can lift the weight of a small child and has the most powerful claw strength of any crustacean.

Nov 28, 2016 · New research finds that the hulking coconut crab has the strongest pinch of any animal. In fact, this crustacean's claws can snap closed harder than most animals can bite — with the exception of...

In the present study, we aimed to (i) determine the pinching force of the wild coconut crab from measurement in situ and (ii) clarify how these animals acquired their mighty claw, using morphometric and ecological data.

Nov 23, 2016 · Exactly how strong a pinch from a coconut crab's claw is, though, was a mystery—until now. Researchers captured 29 coconut crabs on Okinawa Island in Japan and had them clamp down on steel force sensors.

Nov 28, 2016 · Unlike other hermit crab species, the coconut crab has no shell to protect it, just a calcified outer skin, so the mega-claw also acts as a threatening defensive weapon.

Feb 22, 2025 · The coconut crab’s two large front claws have no trouble tearing through coconut shells to get at the flesh inside. Those pincers can exert more force than the human bite — over 1,765 newtons, compared to the human jaw’s 1,300-newton maximum.

Coconut crabs are the largest terrestrial crustacean and are remarkably strong, lifting up to 28 kilograms. The crabs use their claws to fight and defend themselves, and to eat coconuts and...

Mar 8, 2025 · Learn how coconut crabs' incredible claw strength could theoretically crack human skulls, revealing astonishing adaptations and capabilities of these formidable arthropods.

Nov 23, 2016 · The coconut crab has spectacularly powerful claws that can crack open coconuts – hence its name – and could crush your bones in a handshake within seconds. Shin-ichiro Oka, Taketeru Tomita and Kei Miyamoto, all from the Okinawa Churashima Foundation in Japan, carried out a study to determine how strong the claw of a coconut crab really is.

Aug 1, 2021 · The coconut crab, Birgus latro, is a rare organism with the greatest force; it has a pinching force 90 times its body weight. The correlation between the tissue structure, hardness, and composition of the coconut crab claw was studied using a materials science approach.