# How Long Do Coconut Crabs Live?

> Coconut Crab lifespan is typically Possibly 40–60 years. What shortens or extends life, life stages, and status (Vulnerable).

- **Species:** Coconut Crab (*Birgus latro*)
- **Conservation status:** Vulnerable
- **Diet:** Omnivore (coconuts, fruit, seeds, carrion)
- **Habitat:** Tropical islands across the Indo-Pacific
- **Lifespan:** Possibly 40–60 years
- **Canonical HTML:** https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/coconut-crab/how-long-do-coconut-crab-live/
- **Parent profile:** https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/coconut-crab/
- **Last reviewed:** 2026-07-16

## Quick answer

The coconut crab (Birgus latro) is the world's largest land-living arthropod, a giant terrestrial hermit crab found on tropical islands across the Indo-Pacific. Adults reach a leg span of about 1 m (3 ft) and weigh up to roughly 4 kg (9 lb). Famous for climbing trees and cracking open coconuts with powerful claws, it is a long-lived omnivore that may survive 40 to 60 years. The IUCN lists it as Vulnerable.

## Who should skip this page

Skip this if you need a prognosis for one named animal. This page is a species lifespan range.

## Size and body

The coconut crab is the heaviest land arthropod on Earth, with a leg span reaching about 1 m (3 ft) and a body mass of up to roughly 4 kg (9 lb). Unlike its smaller hermit-crab relatives, an adult no longer carries a borrowed shell, instead hardening its own abdomen for protection. Its front claws are extraordinarily strong, capable of a pinch measured among the most powerful of any animal for its size. The body is armoured in a thick exoskeleton that ranges from bluish to reddish-orange depending on the island population.

## Help protect the Coconut Crab

The coconut crab is listed as Vulnerable, with habitat loss the leading threat to its future.

[Donate to protect habitat](https://worldanimalrescuenetwork.org/appeals/habitats/)

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Source: Global Animal Guide (https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/coconut-crab/how-long-do-coconut-crab-live/). Licensed CC BY-NC 4.0 — free for non-commercial reuse with attribution.