Swarm of Unhinged Robber Crabs Invade Family's Barbecue, Remain Bizzarely Unbothered, and Turn Backyard Bash Into a Crustacean Carnival

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Blake Seidel • Managing Editor & Brand Manager
Apr 19, 2024 12:00 PM EDT

Hey, Animal Comedy-ers. We're thankful that the weather is starting to get warmer because that means that we're coming up to picnic season! Everyone loves a good picnic, right? Food fresh off the grill, quality time with the family, and your everyday swarm of crabs. Wait, what? These crabs weren't invited! One family in Australia had their backyard barbecue invaded by a literal swarm of robber crabs, and surprisingly, they remained unbothered. What is wrong with these people?

It turns out that robber crabs or "coconut crabs" are harmless, mostly scavenging for scraps or climbing trees to get and eat coconuts (hence the name). Still, harmless or not, we would be halfway to New Zealand by the time these pictures were taken. Scroll down to see more absolutely absurd pictures of this family's backyard bash turned crustacean carnival and what people had to say about it!

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  • 01
    A of Robber crabs invade a family picnic in Australia.
    via u/trendk*ll3
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    Cheezburger Image 9910458368
    via u/trendk*ll3

    Well, if you're having a barbecue in their backyard too, it would be discourteous not to invite them. A swarm of crabs doesn't just show up out of nowhere. They probably heard the music and were like, "Oh sweet, free food!"

  • 03
    HightBo ty
    via u/trendk*ll3

    How are they so unbothered by this? We would be freaking out. Harmless or not, we don't like the feeling of being surrounded by hundreds of anything. This is a hard pass from us.

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    Cheezburger Image 9910451200
    via u/trendk*ll3
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    Cheezburger Image 9910451456
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    Cheezburger Image 9910457856
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  • 08
    TeuthidTheSquid 12 hr. ago I kind of hope the collective noun for a group of robber crabs actually is "a 11
    via u/TeuthidTheSquid
  • 09
    mikeyj92 12 hr. ago Craaaaab People! Craaaaab People! 6.2k Reply Share
    via u/mikeyj92
  • 10
    king_messi 12 hr. ago Everyone is completely unbothered Imao 16.6k Reply
    via u/king_messi
  • 11
    Prestigious_Rest9078. 10 hr. ago I'm bothered that they're unbothered. 9.9k д Reply Share
    via u/Prestigious_Rest9078
  • 12
    M4thematiX 11 hr. ago • Australians are used to it
    via u/M4thematiX
  • 13
    FullBeansLFG ⚫ 12 hr. ago They're also known as coconut crabs and they're very gentle. These are adult specimens because they've all ditched their shells. But they're very tasty even if sometimes they can be toxic depending on what they've been eating.
    via u/FullBeansLFG
  • 14
    AigataTakeshita 11 hr. ago. Well it dependa on how drunk they are, but most Aussies are respectful of their wildlife, so they should be okay.
    via u/AigataTakeshita
  • 15
    Then Campaign7264 12 hr. ago I guess if you're throwing a party in their yard then they are invited as well.
    via u/Then_Campaign7264
  • 16
    MyaltforMJ 12 hr. ago Looks like the buffet delivered itself 3.9k Reply Share
    via u/MyaltforMJ
  • 17
    Rich-Werewolf4086 12 hr. ago It's always Australia
    via u/Rich-Werewolf4086
  • 18
    calm_thy_self . 12 hr. ago Pardon my ignorance but why isn't anybody running away? Are they harmless?
    via u/calm_thy_self
  • 19
    GuruTheMadMonk 11 hr. ago Everyone except for the girl towards the end looks so nonchalant like it's not even registering that they've been invaded by giant crabs. Me? I'd be screaming my head off standing in a chair or from the top of my vehicle.
    via u/GuruTheMadMonk
  • 20
    Are they aggressive? Will they climb up a chair or a pull down a table? Do they go away after a while? Do they pinch people or pull food from your hands? Is there any way of keeping them away or getting rid of them after they've invaded? Is everyone so calm because they've all themselves and are resigned to a slow death by crab? So many questions.
    via u/GuruTheMadMonk
  • 21
    Malarkey 12 hr. ago Big. Meaty. Claws.
    via u/Malarkey
  • 22
    Eriash 12 hr. ago • I would be in New Zealand by the time picture two was taken. That's stuff of nightmares :)
    via u/Eriash
  • 23
    nikkfuchs 12 hr. ago Strong Starship Troopers vibes
    via u/nikkfuchs
  • 24
    . small_h_hippy 11 hr. ago Robber crabs? Is that why they got sent to Australia?
    via u/small_h_hippy
  • 25
    SeraphOfTheStag. 11 hr. ago This looks like one of those AI generated surreal pics just because of how insane the situation is
    via u/SeraphOfTheStag
  • 26
    Derbster_3434 · 11 hr. ago Only in Australia would this be a fun family experience.
    via u/Derbster_3434
  • 27
    Ok-Reality-9197 11 hr. ago I love the everyone is just vibing, completely unbothered. The crabs just wanted to hang out and party
    via u/Ok-Reality-9197
  • 28
    daiwilly 12 hr. ago Imagine if these were spiders....you wouldn't sit eating your salad now, would ya?
    via u/daiwilly

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Tags

bbq crabs animals barbecue backyard crab family Carnival robber story true story swarm animal stories funny funny animals
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