THE COCOANUT-CRAB th 
and narrow pair of pincers, it extracts the white albumin- 
ous substance. I think this is as curious a case of instinct 
as ever I heard of, and likewise of adaptation in structure 
between two objects apparently so remote from each other 
in the scheme of nature, as a crab and a cocoa-nut tree. 
The Birgos is diurnal in its habits; but every night it is 
said to pay a visit to the sea, no doubt for the purpose of 
moistening its branchiz. ‘The young are likewise hatched, 
and live for some time, on the coast. ‘hese crabs inhabit 
deep burrows, which they hollow out beneath the roots of 
trees ; and where they accumulate surprising quantities of 
the picked fibres of the cocoa-nut husk, on which they 
rest as on a bed. ‘The Malays sometimes take advantage 
of this, and collect the fibrous mass to use as junk. These 
crabs are very good to eat ; moreover, under the tail of the 
larger ones there is a great mass of fat, which, when 
melted, sometimes yields as much as a quart bottle full of 
limpid oil. It has been stated by some authors that the 
Birgos crawls up the cocoa-nut trees for the purpose of 
stealing the nuts: I very much doubt the possibility of 
this ; but with the Pandanus! the task would be very much 
easier. I was told that on these islands the Birgos lives 
only on the nuts which have fallen to the ground. Captain 
Moresby informs me that this crab inhabits the Chagos 
and Seychelle groups, but not the neighbouring Maldiva 
archipelago. It formerly abounded at Mauritius, but only 
a few small ones are now found there. In the Pacific, this 
species, or one with closely allied habits, is said? to inhabit 
a single coral island, north of the Society group. To show 
the wonderful strength of the front pair of pincers, I may 
mention, that Captain Moresby confined one in a strong 
tin-box, which had held biscuits, the lid being secured 
with wire ; but the crab turned down the edges and escaped. 
In turning down the edges, it actually punched many 
small holes quite through the tin!’ 
Mr. Boddam-Whetham, in his ‘ Pearls of the Pacific’ 
(1876), declares that the crab first ascends the tree to push 
' See Proceedings of Zoological Society, 1832, p. 17. 
* Tyerman and Bennett, Voyage, §c., volgii. p. 33. 
