We found it on type of beach land at scotland, can't really remember much else about it.

Hey CS! Where abouts in Scotland didy you see it? IT's quite a baffling picture, but I can make out the legs which are definitely crustacean-looking (?). Is it really that big or is it just close to the camera? Did you take any more snaps? I'd be happy to have a look. The way it's being held, looks weird, I'm guessing it's the left side of the beastie facing the camera? Otherwise the legs are all screwy.

RKD

It was Inverness, and it was very large, about the size of a torso on a standard size male human.

That is a weird weird creature! THe size of a male torso!!!!!

Looks like a catfish melded with a crab in the FLY machine

seriously... the size of an adult male's torso? Do you have more photographic evidence? Sounds a bit of an oddity to me... Course it couldv'e just been a badly decomposed lobster or spider crab, mind you. What's that right at the bottom of the animal? You've got the legs in the foreground (or at least half the legs; this makes it look really out of proportion), but what's at the bottom there, you know, just right of the foot?

RKD

RKD,

I don't think so, but I will check for you.

Edit: Afraid not, sorry.

It's a fascinating picture, to say the least!

The legs look crustacean, not sure about the rest though.

I'm not meaning to sound cheeky or anything dude, but I just want o make sure; this aint a photoshop or anything is it? Manipulation or anything?

No offence intended dude, tis just I've been a member of cryptozoology.com for several years now, and I've become somewhat of a sceptic. In the best possible sense, of course! I don't mean that I disbelieve everything, I just like to consider a more rational explanation along with any other explanation (like to think that I've got an enquiring mind )

RKD

Don't worry about it. No it's definately not, it was took on my old mobile phone zoom on the pic to see it's real.

Its definetly a crustacean...Not the size of a human torso though...

Certainly a crustacean. Many wierd and wonderful varieties around



Japanese Spider Crab

My guess would be a hermit crab - like a coconut crab, even though Hermit crabs aren't true crabs. They're crustaceans of the group Paguroidea, closely related to true crabs of the group Brachyura.



Coconut Crab

With decomposition - Lobster anyone ?

The European lobster is slightly smaller on average than the closely-related American lobster, Homarus americanus, with a maximum recorded length of 1.26 m, and weights of up to nearly 19 kg. However, such giants are rarely seen, and lengths of 23-50 cm with weights of around 0.7 kg are typical.

European Lobster


What is it doing in Scotland one could ask - ask away



Shellfish facts provided by the Shellfish Association of Great Britain.


Testing would determine the species. Hard to say 100% from the one piccy.

I absolutely love crustaceans In salads, sanwiches...................

Thanks, psyche101, many possibilities there .

NP

One more possible (but IMO unlikely) candidate - Pseudocarcinus gigas

Not so much from the top but maybe the underneath view.

GROOSE.....Put that thing back where you found it!!! It looks like a giant roach with crab legs. Either way it's disgusting!! lol.

It can't be the size of a human torso...There is a person holding it in their hand!

I dunno, drop in in some boiling water, wait for it to turn red mmm big lobster

Frogfish has a point _CiviliaN^SoldieR_ - is it as big as a human torso? It is being held and apears to be the length on the holders fore arm. Not nearly as thick as a human torso. Possibly as long but not comparable in size.

that thing looks like it smelled.

almost looks like a claw-type thing on the lower right of the creature, on the person's left side.

Maybe it is a claw Oh my!

The picture makes it hard to tell really what it is.....strange looking thats for sure....

^ I still reckon it is a type of Hermit Crab

Do they get that big.....

Hermit crabs? Usually no, but since they keep growing for their entire lives (hence moving though shells), I suppose it would be possible for it to get as large as in the picture...probably not torso-sized tohugh.

i was wondering, my kid's have bought them at the beach and they never got anywhere near that big....You know it almost looks like a horseshoe crab to me.....

^ Check the previous page I have links posted. Yep, they sure do get that big, at least the robber, or coconut crab does (not that it is really a crab. Several other suprisingly large species listed there as suspects as well.

Oh really wow....I have never seen one even close to that size.....Its too bad the poster didn't have a better picture of it.....

Check out the page before, some good pics there. Have a look at the Japanese spider crab Possible 4 metre leg span That's one big crab!!!!

I went back and looked....man there are some neat animals....I love the weird animals you don't see all the time.....

Inverness? Is it a freshwater creature?

Yeah... the only big crab to be able to leave water is the cocoanut crab. We have a carapace (the whole lot of it, I suppose the "skeleton") down in the first year lab... Man that is MASSIVE! Thing is, it's got such wee pincers and quite a small body, but it's still impressive.




why would it being at Inverness make it a freshwater species? Inverness is on the Beaully Firth, so it could have at least been an estuarine animal. There's a load of Dolphins in there.

Anyhoo, I've added a "bitmapped" version, trying to sort out the dimentions of it. Still think it looks close to the camera, but I dunno...

The bit you said was a claw was more like a head if i remember correctly, it would always unfold down when picked up like that.

So it's just a crab, that's rarely large?

Nope, it's probably just a naturally big crab

you can see the arm and tip of finger of the hand holding the crustacean, it couldn't possibly be the size of a human torso...

Its a large crab no doubt...

Ah okay, sometimes your mind can trick you i guess.

Sorry for wasting your time guys, just thought i'd share. Thanks for all your help.

...Crab people.

oh no its the crab people from pluto!! just kidding its just a large crab

hmmm i wonder what that nasty mess is between the claw and the rest of its legs? just wondering

Right enough. I dunno. Maybe it's decomposing and just beginning to fall apart?

RKD

It looks like..a big crab

JAPANESE SPIDER CRAB?!?! 4 METERS?!?! OMg now I'm gonna have nightmares:'(

I remember when I was in Singapore(like 3 months ago) we saw 2 of those bayonet crabs in the beach, my poor little bro didn't get in the water after that

it looks like a robber crab

Look like crab, talk like people.

That's a crab

That has sufficiently given me the heebie-jeebies.

i can't tell what it is at that angle! Like most people said, it is very crustacean(sp?) like.

Pluto? everyone knows that crab people live underground after we beat them ib the Kindling Wars a 1000 years ago.

What really amazes me is that you found this dead thing on the beach, and you just went over and picked it up. How'd that sucker smell? I'm guessing it wasn't like roses.

We inspected it, humans have a natural nack of doing that.

Yes, but you skirt around the issue. Did it stink?

I'm going to guess that you had to wash your hands with lemon juice to get rid of that stink....