NOT FAT

This crab is just…remarkably beautiful. And I’m not joking at all—it’s got everything a crab should, a sky-colored belly, red legs/claws with dainty yellow tips, Easter egg–pink eyes (I'll never understand), and an orangey-yellow body.

Meet the red sally-lightfoot (Grapsus grapsus), not to be confused with the ugly painted sally-lightfoot (Percnon gibbesi), which is also known as the nimble spraycrab. (deep breath) Painted sally-lightfoots are pretty—TASTELESS, (haha) with random brown/blue/red patches. Not a fan.  I totally am.

Naturally, with my luck, it lives nowhere near my humble abode, residing on the west coast from California all the way down to Peru. PEOPLE aren’t as common as this crab! (Okay, maybe that was a bit of a metaphor.)

The African version is the Ascension Island sally-lightfoot (Grapsus adscensionis).

Ascension Island sally-lightfoot
(Grapsus adscensionis)

Red “sallies” enjoy cleaning ticks off marine iguanas (Amblyrhynchus cristatus).

What a way to make a living.