Viral videos of knife-wielding crab, salt-licking clam are fake, cruel: Experts

By Steve Pak, | February 28, 2016

Crab-holding Knife Video

Crab-holding Knife Video

A viral crab video featuring the sea creature holding a knife has been proven to be a hoax and there is nothing unusual about its behavior besides that it is holding a cutting tool. A marine biology expert also points out that the knife-stabbing crustacean seems very upset.

Jack Cover from the National Aquarium in Baltimore told the Washington Post that the video is  fake.

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The crustacean in the video is likely a blue land crab (Cardisoma guanhumi). It can grow up to 4.3 inches (11 centimeters) in width and 18 ounces (500 grams) in weight.

It would be second nature for the crab to wave its huge claw at any human or animal that got too close. Cover suggests the maker of the short clip just placed the knife handle in the crab claw in order to create a visual effect, according to Science Alert.

One theory is that the crab's body was unable to drop the knife. Another one is that its animal instinct caused the creature to grip the knife tightly.

Cover explained that the crab was showing normal behavior. Even if a plastic gun had been put into the crab's claw it would have been swinging the toy around.

The marine animal expert explained that humans have become separated from nature. For example, people watching the video might easily forget that crabs' claws are their natural weapons, and the sea creatures also do not know what knives are.   

A similar viral video seems to show a clam using its tongue to eat salt on a table. However, Miriam Goldstein from the Scripps Institute of Oceanography told the Huffington Post that the clam is trying to use its foot to dig into mud or sand.

Such viral videos are fun for millions of viewers to watch, but they create fake situations that are based on the animals' fear or anger.

Animals' natural behavior can be interesting. That includes a photo snapped by award-winning photographer Joshua Lambus of an octopus holding the tentacles of a Portuguese man o' war.

Lambus explained that the octopus species is rarely seen. In the image it seems the sea creature is using tentacles to protect itself from predators, according to Scientific American.


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