Trouble for the world's largest terrestrial invertebrate

The coconut crab (Birgus latro) is the world's largest terrestrial invertebrate - picture a crab with the mass of a house cat and limbs measuring a meter across. Although the gigantic crustaceans range widely across the islands and atolls of the tropical Indo-Pacific, new research suggests that they are increasingly imperiled by a diversity of threats. As chair of the IUCN Freshwater Crustacean Specialist Group, Neil Cumberlidge was in contact with researchers who were noticing localized declines among coconut crabs. The team compiled a review of studies on the crabs current geographical extent, habitat needs, conservation threats, and population trends, from which it was determined that population declines of 30% or more had occurred over the past two decades in numerous locations within the crabs range. Consequently, the Red List status for this species was elevated to Vulnerable in 2020.