Pale anemone hermit crab (Dardanus deformis)

Pale anemone hermit crab

Dardanus deformis

Valid name (WoRMS, AphiaID 208730, checked 2026-10-31).

English

Pale anemone hermit crab

Scientific

Dardanus deformis

Dhivehi

No recorded Dhivehi name

Group

Hermit crabs and relatives

Family

Diogenidae (left-handed hermit crabs)

Depth and habitat

Reef-associated, recorded from 0 to 12 m

IUCN status

NE · Not EvaluatedNot Evaluated (NE)

Description

The pale anemone hermit crab carries sea anemones on its shell for protection and moves them to a new shell when it changes home.

In the Maldives

Recorded from the Maldives: museum specimens (n=5); iNaturalist research-grade observations in the Maldives (n=5, 5 observers); literature records via OBIS.

Sources

sealifebase.se /summary/Dardanus-deformis.html
marinespecies.org /aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=208730
inaturalist.org /taxa/355013
commons.wikimedia.org /wiki/File:Cangrejo_ermitaño_(Dardanus_deformis)_con_anémonas_(Calliac

Dhivehi name source: No species-level Dhivehi name found in Dhivehi Wikipedia, SeaLifeBase (country: Maldives) or MRS/MMRI invertebrate publications.