MakerBot Prints New Shells For Homeless Crabs

[Veho]

Hermit crabs don’t make their own shells. They scavenge their homes. And now, hermit crabs are facing a housing shortage as the worldwide shell supply is decreasing. With a shell shortage, hermit crabs around the world are being forced to stick their butts into bottles, shotgun shells, and anything else they can find. This is not acceptable. As a community, we can reach out to this vulnerable species and offer our digital design skills and 3D printing capabilities and give hermit crabs another option: 3D printed shells.


We’ve set up a crab habitat, a crabitat, here at the Botcave in Brooklyn and Miles is setting up a crabitat in Los Angeles. We need help from the community to design shells so we can print them out and see if the hermit crabs like them. Can you design a shell that hermit crabs will like? We’ll print them out here at the botcave, put them in the crabitats and see which designs the hermit crabs will move into. Will they like ABS or PLA? Will they prefer one color over another? Will they even consider a 3D printed shell? We won’t know until we use empirical science and test it out.

If you participate in the project, use the hashtag #SHELLTER on twitter so that we can all track what’s going on. You can follow Project Shellter on Facebook too!

This is a new frontier of crowdsourced science. Please design shells that you think a hermit crab would like and upload them to thingiverse and tag them with “SHELLTER.” Miles will be posting a summary of his research on design parameters for hermit crab shells next. If you design them, together we’ll do science and find a way to solve the hermit crab housing problem.

Hermit crabs search for suitable houses once they outgrow their old ones, and when suitable snail shells aren't available, they settle down for whatever they can find that's vaguely shell-like. Some are lucky enough to find something strong and serviceable and cute, but most of them live in crap.

This and other similar projects might not solve the problem (shell exploitation for all purposes is a large industry; hermit crabs are the only customers that would settle for a plastic alternative but they need more than a bunch of hobbyists with printers can make), but it's a noble sentiment, I guess.

As a side note: the house doesn't have to be snail-shell-shaped on the outside, as long as it's comfortably crab-ass-shaped on the inside; the houses can be ornate or funny shaped like that teapot example, they can look like tiny brick houses or Volkswagen Beetles or camper vans or footballs, crabs don't mind. Imagine an aquarium full of crawling Advance Wars tanks

So if you have a suggestion or design on your mind, send a comment to the MakerBot team.

 

[alidsl]

This is epic, I just hope it takes off

 

[Nujui]

That's rather nice of them

I could think of a design, though I'm sick atm D:

 

[Nathan Drake]

inb4penisshells

This is fairly interesting. It would be neat to see where this may go.

 

[Veho]

My suggestion:

Imagine this crawling along the sea bottom

 

[DeathStrudel]

Great way to hold back the evolutionary process. I wish humans didn't always have to take it upon themselves to fix everyone elses' problems, more than not we just screw things up. Instead of "fixing" problems we created, we should focus on not causing problems in the first place.

 

[alidsl]

Great way to hold back the evolutionary process. I wish humans didn't always have to take it upon themselves to fix everyone elses' problems, more than not we just screw things up. Instead of "fixing" problems we created, we should focus on not causing problems in the first place.

Maybe focusing on stopping animals from becoming extinct would also be clever

 

[mameks]

That's so nice
I want a colony of Hermit Crabs and my own 3D printer, and make little houses and stuff for them :3
Also this

Spoiler

 

[DeathStrudel]

Great way to hold back the evolutionary process. I wish humans didn't always have to take it upon themselves to fix everyone elses' problems, more than not we just screw things up. Instead of "fixing" problems we created, we should focus on not causing problems in the first place.

Maybe focusing on stopping animals from becoming extinct would also be clever

I guess you have failed to notice that almost every time humans try to "fix" problems, there is usually some unpredicted negative consequence. And there are other ways to help prevent animals from becoming extinct. Maybe we could work to clean up beaches, or try to make the selling of shells illegal, but no, we want the easy way were you throw a bunch more stuff into the ocean. Life is tenacious, there have been multiple times throughout history where 99% of life has been wiped out, yet life continues to this day. If we didn't do this, the "fit"(as in survival of the fittest) hermit crabs would survive and pass on their genes, over time hermit crabs might adapt to not need a shell and then there would be no problem. Sorry that I'm thinking about this logically instead of emotionally.

 

[alidsl]

Great way to hold back the evolutionary process. I wish humans didn't always have to take it upon themselves to fix everyone elses' problems, more than not we just screw things up. Instead of "fixing" problems we created, we should focus on not causing problems in the first place.

Maybe focusing on stopping animals from becoming extinct would also be clever

I guess you have failed to notice that almost every time humans try to "fix" problems, there is usually some unpredicted negative consequence. And there are other ways to help prevent animals from becoming extinct. Maybe we could work to clean up beaches, or try to make the selling of shells illegal, but no, we want the easy way were you throw a bunch more stuff into the ocean. Life is tenacious, there have been multiple times throughout history where 99% of life has been wiped out, yet life continues to this day. If we didn't do this, the "fit"(as in survival of the fittest) hermit crabs would survive and pass on their genes, over time hermit crabs might adapt to not need a shell and then there would be no problem. Sorry that I'm thinking about this logically instead of emotionally.

Because making the selling of shells illegal is stupid, and we want an excuse to design shells ourselves. Plus we are fixing a problem that we created thus rectifying the situation

 

[DeathStrudel]

Great way to hold back the evolutionary process. I wish humans didn't always have to take it upon themselves to fix everyone elses' problems, more than not we just screw things up. Instead of "fixing" problems we created, we should focus on not causing problems in the first place.

Maybe focusing on stopping animals from becoming extinct would also be clever

I guess you have failed to notice that almost every time humans try to "fix" problems, there is usually some unpredicted negative consequence. And there are other ways to help prevent animals from becoming extinct. Maybe we could work to clean up beaches, or try to make the selling of shells illegal, but no, we want the easy way were you throw a bunch more stuff into the ocean. Life is tenacious, there have been multiple times throughout history where 99% of life has been wiped out, yet life continues to this day. If we didn't do this, the "fit"(as in survival of the fittest) hermit crabs would survive and pass on their genes, over time hermit crabs might adapt to not need a shell and then there would be no problem. Sorry that I'm thinking about this logically instead of emotionally.

Because making the selling of shells illegal is stupid, and we want an excuse to design shells ourselves. Plus we are fixing a problem that we created thus rectifying the situation

A really great way to dispute something is to just say "that's stupid" /endsarcasm. And for the third time I will reiterate for you: MOST OF THE TIME WHEN HUMANS TRY TO FIX PROBLEMS THEY CREATED IN THE ENVIRONMENT THERE ARE UNEXPECTED NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES.

 

[mameks]

Great way to hold back the evolutionary process. I wish humans didn't always have to take it upon themselves to fix everyone elses' problems, more than not we just screw things up. Instead of "fixing" problems we created, we should focus on not causing problems in the first place.

Maybe focusing on stopping animals from becoming extinct would also be clever

I guess you have failed to notice that almost every time humans try to "fix" problems, there is usually some unpredicted negative consequence. And there are other ways to help prevent animals from becoming extinct. Maybe we could work to clean up beaches, or try to make the selling of shells illegal, but no, we want the easy way were you throw a bunch more stuff into the ocean. Life is tenacious, there have been multiple times throughout history where 99% of life has been wiped out, yet life continues to this day. If we didn't do this, the "fit"(as in survival of the fittest) hermit crabs would survive and pass on their genes, over time hermit crabs might adapt to not need a shell and then there would be no problem. Sorry that I'm thinking about this logically instead of emotionally.

Because making the selling of shells illegal is stupid, and we want an excuse to design shells ourselves. Plus we are fixing a problem that we created thus rectifying the situation

A really great way to dispute something is to just say "that's stupid" /endsarcasm. And for the third time I will reiterate for you: MOST OF THE TIME WHEN HUMANS TRY TO FIX PROBLEMS IN THE ENVIRONMENT THEY CREATED THERE ARE UNEXPECTED NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES.

How do you know that this won't work?
'sides, even if it doesn't do anything it's not going to harm the crabs...they're not going to make shells for all of them, there's too many so the ones that don't have shells and survive will adapt anyway...so what's the problem?

 

[alidsl]

Great way to hold back the evolutionary process. I wish humans didn't always have to take it upon themselves to fix everyone elses' problems, more than not we just screw things up. Instead of "fixing" problems we created, we should focus on not causing problems in the first place.

Maybe focusing on stopping animals from becoming extinct would also be clever

I guess you have failed to notice that almost every time humans try to "fix" problems, there is usually some unpredicted negative consequence. And there are other ways to help prevent animals from becoming extinct. Maybe we could work to clean up beaches, or try to make the selling of shells illegal, but no, we want the easy way were you throw a bunch more stuff into the ocean. Life is tenacious, there have been multiple times throughout history where 99% of life has been wiped out, yet life continues to this day. If we didn't do this, the "fit"(as in survival of the fittest) hermit crabs would survive and pass on their genes, over time hermit crabs might adapt to not need a shell and then there would be no problem. Sorry that I'm thinking about this logically instead of emotionally.

Because making the selling of shells illegal is stupid, and we want an excuse to design shells ourselves. Plus we are fixing a problem that we created thus rectifying the situation

A really great way to dispute something is to just say "that's stupid" /endsarcasm. And for the third time I will reiterate for you: MOST OF THE TIME WHEN HUMANS TRY TO FIX PROBLEMS THEY CREATED IN THE ENVIRONMENT THERE ARE UNEXPECTED NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES.

Could you give an example plox

 

[DeathStrudel]

Cane toads introduced into Australia to control canefield pests, were unsuccessful and have become a major pest in their own right.

Kudzu introduced as an ornamental plant and later used to prevent erosion in earthworks, has become a major problem in the Southeastern United States. Kudzu has displaced native plants, and has effectively taken over significant portions of land.

Africanized Bees: In 1957 while searching for an increase in honey production Warwick E. Kerr, accidentally released an Africanized bee in Brazil. The "especially defensive" Africanized bee species expanded into the north and south Americas.

The introduction of rabbits in Australia and New Zealand for food was followed by an explosive growth in the rabbit population; rabbits have become a major feral pest in these countries

Destruction of the old growth pine forest habitat vital to the survival of the endangered Red Cockaded Woodpecker was greatly accelerated by the private land Sections 9 and 3 of the Endangered Species Act, the very law intended to protect the birds.

Pesticides intended to increase crop yields cause untended animals to die as well as build up genetic resistance in pests leading to the production of harsher pesticides.

Please learn to do your own research next time.

 

[mameks]

Cane toads introduced into Australia to control canefield pests, were unsuccessful and have become a major pest in their own right.

Kudzu introduced as an ornamental plant and later used to prevent erosion in earthworks, has become a major problem in the Southeastern United States. Kudzu has displaced native plants, and has effectively taken over significant portions of land.

Africanized Bees: In 1957 while searching for an increase in honey production Warwick E. Kerr, accidentally released an Africanized bee in Brazil. The "especially defensive" Africanized bee species expanded into the north and south Americas.

The introduction of rabbits in Australia and New Zealand for food was followed by an explosive growth in the rabbit population; rabbits have become a major feral pest in these countries

Destruction of the old growth pine forest habitat vital to the survival of the endangered Red Cockaded Woodpecker was greatly accelerated by the private land Sections 9 and 3 of the Endangered Species Act, the very law intended to protect the birds.

Pesticides intended to increase crop yields cause untended animals to die as well as build up genetic resistance in pests leading to the production of harsher pesticides.

Please learn to do your own research next time.

All of these examples are about how humans have tried to fix their own problems, not those of animals

 

[DeathStrudel]

Cane toads introduced into Australia to control canefield pests, were unsuccessful and have become a major pest in their own right.

Kudzu introduced as an ornamental plant and later used to prevent erosion in earthworks, has become a major problem in the Southeastern United States. Kudzu has displaced native plants, and has effectively taken over significant portions of land.

Africanized Bees: In 1957 while searching for an increase in honey production Warwick E. Kerr, accidentally released an Africanized bee in Brazil. The "especially defensive" Africanized bee species expanded into the north and south Americas.

The introduction of rabbits in Australia and New Zealand for food was followed by an explosive growth in the rabbit population; rabbits have become a major feral pest in these countries

Destruction of the old growth pine forest habitat vital to the survival of the endangered Red Cockaded Woodpecker was greatly accelerated by the private land Sections 9 and 3 of the Endangered Species Act, the very law intended to protect the birds.

Pesticides intended to increase crop yields cause untended animals to die as well as build up genetic resistance in pests leading to the production of harsher pesticides.

Please learn to do your own research next time.

All of these examples are about how humans have tried to fix their own problems, not those of animals

A technicality. The point was to show that when humans interfere in nature things often go wrong, their reasoning behind interfering isn't really important, it was just to illustrate a point

Also this one wasn't:

Destruction of the old growth pine forest habitat vital to the survival of the endangered Red Cockaded Woodpecker was greatly accelerated by the private land Sections 9 and 3 of the Endangered Species Act, the very law intended to protect the birds.

EDIT:

How do you know that this won't work?
'sides, even if it doesn't do anything it's not going to harm the crabs...they're not going to make shells for all of them, there's too many so the ones that don't have shells and survive will adapt anyway...so what's the problem?

The problem is that we don't know what could happen. Just think about it. Putting a bunch of plastic in the ocean. Does that really sound like a great idea?

 

[alidsl]

The plastic will be worn by the crabs, plus how is plastic any worse than a shell in the ocean

 

[Veho]

Great way to hold back the evolutionary process.

Quite. They are denying hermit crabs the opportunity to be wiped out because of a mistake humans made.

It "holds back the evolutionary process" as much as any other conservation effort. Efforts to preserve endangered species are actively trying to halt and combat evolution. That's kind of the point.

If we didn't do this, the "fit"(as in survival of the fittest) hermit crabs would survive and pass on their genes, over time hermit crabs might adapt to not need a shell and then there would be no problem.

The only problem with that approach is that it would take them a (few) million years to change to that extent, and they will go extinct in a few hundred. Or it could go another way, where the "fit" hermit crabs adapt to living in trash, and become dependant on trash, only to die out when (and if) one day people stop dumping crap into the oceans.

Putting a bunch of plastic in the ocean. Does that really sound like a great idea?

A few pounds of non-toxic biodegradable plastic on top of the three hundred billion pounds of toxic plastic already in there? I doubt anyone but the crabs would notice the difference.