- The plucky crustacean was spotted on the Thai island of Koh Lanta
- Awikaporn Chukaew, 25, spotted the two-inch long crustacean
- He removed the energy drink cap before helping the little creature on its way
- He hopes the video will encourage people to pay attention to the environment
This is the heart-wrenching moment a tiny Hermit crab scuttles along the beach after getting stuck in a broken glass bottle top that it has tried to make into a home.
The video shows the little creature struggling to walk under the weight of the broken M150 energy drink bottle top which is far heavier than the shell it is used to carrying on its back.
The person who spotted this plucky crustacean on the Thai island of Koh Lanta said they hoped this footage would show how much damage human rubbish causes in our oceans.
The Daily Mail has been at the forefront of campaigning, including with the launch of a Take Back Your Bottles initiative.
This is the heart-wrenching moment a tiny Hermit crab scuttles along the beach after getting stuck in a broken glass bottle top
Awikaporn Chukaew, 25, spotted the two-inch long crustacean on the Thai holiday island last week.
Mr Chukaew said: ‘I have a restaurant on the island and every night there are lots of hermit crabs running along the beach. I went out last week and saw one inside the broken bottle’
The species hide in a shell in order to hide their soft twisted abdomen from predators.
‘I felt sorry for the crab. It will have a hard life. The M150 top is heavier than its normal shell’, he said.
‘I want people to look at the video and think about what they do with their trash. Throwing rubbish into the sea has a bad effect on wildlife and the fish’, he said.
Mr Chukaew picked up the creature and carefully removed the broken glass before releasing it back onto the sand to go on its way.
He said he hopes the video will encourage people to turn their attention to the environment.
The video shows the little creature struggling to walk with the broken M150 energy drink bottle top on its back as music from bars played in the background
The plucky crustacean was spotted on the Thai island of Koh Lanta and the person who took the footage removed the energy drink cap before helping the little creature on its way
In 2015 researchers found the shyest male hermit crabs actually have the most to offer a potential lover.
Professor Mark Briffa, a marine animal behaviour researcher at Plymouth University, and his colleagues have found that the most timid crabs tend to more high quality sperm – making them a better option for females looking for a mate.
This, they say, is because the crabs that spend more time hiding from the world inside their shells, also have invested the most resources in becoming reproductively fit.
It is an unusual approach in the animal kingdom, where the boldest, bravest and strongest usually win the right to mate.
Indeed, in many species males have to prove their physical fitness with bold and dramatic displays – like in peacocks and birds of paradise – and even mortal combat in some cases.